The Terminators: Army of Legend - Volume II: Rise of the Terminators
by Sir Areis Lionheart
Summary: The Terminator Militia-an army of fantastic characters led by a young boy-continually expands as it begins to take its place as one of the greatest armies in the history of the world. Rated M: For Language, War Violence, and Sexual Content in later chapters DISCLAIMER: NOT ABOUT THE ROBOTIC TERMINATORS! NAME IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL!
1. Chapter I: A Time of Mourning

_**Chapter I**_**:**

-**''A Time of Mourning''-**

-**Connorsville, Illinois**-  
>-<em><strong>02 November 2002<strong>_-

-_**1010 Hours**_**-**

They say that time heals all wounds, for some...that may be true...for others, not so much. Great Commander Alex Vaughn, founder and leader of the Terminator Militia-a military composed of some of the most fantastic characters in the history of the world, had just the witnessed the brutal demise of one of his prized soldiers...and one of his best friends...

Northwestern Regional Commander Rapid had fallen to by a silver bullet to the brain. Since the army's formation in 1997, Alex had held a sense of invincibility, that his forces were unstoppable, upon Rapid's death, however, he saw that, like everything else, the militia had a weakness...silver. Even with the mutation serum, even with the amazing powers he could possibly develop, he was still only human, and, like every living thing, given the right conditions, he could be killed.

His sleep was continuously haunted by Rapid's death, of seeing the blood-boiling as the silver violently reacted with the serum absorbed in the blood, producing heat that literally boiled the blood-and of seeing as his longtime friend fell to the fate of a single gunshot, fired by accident by the one who was holding him hostage.

Alex had mixed feelings concerning Rapid's death, a part of him blamed himself for the skunk's death, for delaying the killing of Rapid's executioner before the bullet could be fired, the other part blamed Cheet, a cheetah cub and the Terminators' newest member, who, upon attacking General John "No-Tongue" Roberts, leader of the Little Kid Army or LKA, had surprised the general and caused him to depress the trigger of the Colt .45, firing the silver bullet through Rapid's brain...the bullet that ultimately killed one of Alex's best friends.

Alex's young forest dragon, Piermont, could tell by the mutual mind the military shared that enabled telepathic conversations, that Alex was hurting...that a massive part of Alex's heart had been ripped from his chest. Along with forcing the Commander to come to terms with his own mortality, it had also caused the young, nine-year-old boy to collapse into a deep depression, to which his fellow teammates were beginning to worry about.

At Rapid's funeral, held in their town of residence, nobody spoke, nobody looked up, everyone wore a black garb and covered their faces. No outburst of energy...no witty remark...the pervasive solemnity was enough to bring even the toughest man to tears. The militia broadcasted their sadness like radios into the cemetery. Anyone who entered was bound to fall prey to the melancholy, even those who despised or did not know the skunk.

As the bagpipes played, and Rapid's body rested on a pile of hay bails that Piermont and the other dragons set fire to, Alpha Company, as well as friends, family, and even total strangers stood around, watching the cremation. For as a soldier was born of fire, so shall he die of fire.

As the fires burned on, Sergeant Major Crash Bandicoot approached Piermont and whispered, "God I hope Alex is okay."

"He's not," Piermont replied sadly, stunning emerald eyes shining with tears, "He's hurting."

"I feel so bad for him."

"Aye, as do I...but I think this will be an excruciatingly difficult memory to overcome. If Alex overcomes it at all, it will be a God-given miracle."

"It's always the good ones that die..."

"It's God's way."

"I wish it wasn't...how much pain did he suffer through?"

"Much I'd imagine. I mean, his blood literally boiled inside his body," the army-green dragon replied, "Poor Alex blames himself for this tragedy."

Crash hesitated before saying, "I'm gonna go talk to him."

"Please comfort him...he needs it."

Crash solemnly nodded, and walked towards the Commander, "Alex? Mind if I sit here?" he asked.

Alex shook his head slowly, his face showed the shock value he still felt over Rapid's death...and Crash knew it was a memory, a demon, he would never overcome. Crash waited a few minutes to speak as Alex stared off into the space in front of him, facial expression blank, as if he was lost in his own world.

"Alex..." Crash began, "You do know that his death wasn't your fault...right?"

Alex shook his head, "I killed him..."

"No you didn't."

"Then Cheet killed him..."

"He didn't either."

"Well ONE of us had to!" Alex shouted angrily, causing Crash to wince. "I should have killed the general before he was able to shoot Rapid, but I was too afraid to. And Cheet, Cheet didn't help either, if he wouldn't have attacked him, Rapid would not have been shot."

Alex fell back down as fresh tears came to his eyes. "I could have stopped it."

"No, it was imminent. There was no way you could stop it," Crash knew very well that this was a lie, but if it could improve his friend's melancholy, he was more than willing to speak it.

"You're lying."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are, I can tell. What you say and what you think are two completely different views. You spoke the positive one to 'make me feel better', but in all reality, you know as well as I that the shooting could have been prevented, pending I would have taken action when I had the opportunity."

_Crap_, Crash thought behind the impregnable, steel walls of the private half of his mind, _I forgot about the mutual mental bank..._. What he said was, "Alex, no. There was nothing you could do."

"Stop lying to me! For the love of Christ, stop freaking LYING to me! You KNOW it could have been prevented!"

Crash then realized that there was no reasoning with him, and, feeling like he failed his mission, he returned to his post, ushering Piermont over to talk to his rider. "Wait, what? If you failed, what makes you think _I_ will do any better?"

"You're his dragon," Crash whispered to the dragon, casting occasional, cautious glances at the Commander who still sat in his own little world, "You bonded with him at the Choosing, so you have a greater effect on him than I. As odd as it may seem, Piermont, he worships the ground you walk on."

"Why?"

"_Because_ of the Choosing, _because_ of the close, eternal bond you share. You try talking to him, perhaps he'll listen to you...and you are also a much better liar than myself."

"Yeah, you mean that I never forget about the mental bank?"

Crash lowered his head, shaking it.

"Hey, if _I _could hear you, so could Alex."

"Can you just...try? Please?"

"Fine, but don't expect me to fare better than you did. Especially since the intention of these talks has already been shredded by a careless thought."

Crash, eyes narrowed, glared at the smiling Piermont, "You're an arrogant prick."

"Thank you!" Piermont said, looking pleased with himself and the comment.

"Oi...just...talk to him."

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

"Whatever."

"Sorry, I meant: 'Yes Mother'."

"Just go goddammit!"

"Okay! Okay! Jesus Christ! Settle down man! It's just a joke...Jesus."

Piermont walked over to the Commander, trying his luck to cheer his rider up. "Alex?"

"What do you want, Piermont?"

The dragon sat beside his rider, "I'm sorry."

"About what?"

"About Rapid, he was a good friend."

"Aye, I agree."

"Tell me, what's wrong?"

"I just fear that Rapid's death was my fault."

"Why?"

"I could have shot and killed No-Tongue, I could have stopped Rapid's shooting."

"Commander...there's nothing you could have done."

"Yes, I could have stopped it," as Alex lowered his head in shame, Piermont glanced over at Crash, who was giving him two thumbs up.

Piermont shook his head, tending to his rider. "C'mon," the dragon said, "Let's go for a walk."

Looking back, Piermont saw that Crash clearly not happy about this unplanned idea. All Piermont did was throw him the bird.

In the woods adjacent to the cemetery, Piermont and Alex walked side-by-side, together. As he normally did when he was alone with his rider, Piermont's cocky, arrogant attitude mysteriously vanished, and his true colors showed. "It's not your fault, Alex," he began, "What happened to Rapid was impossible to prevent."

"It is..."

"No."

"How can you say that, Piermont?"

"I can because of this: it was Rapid's destiny to die. God has a plan for everybody. Everything that happens happens for a reason. Whether that event is a close friend or family member's death, an injury, a theft...it doesn't matter."

"A reason for everything? I have yet to see any clear reason for Rapid's demise."

"Just because you don't know His reasoning doesn't mean you should judge God's reason or his judgment. He knows why He killed Rapid, even if you don't. Don't lose faith, Alex, please. I know we all are hurting, Rapid was a dear friend, someone who's level of charisma, kindness, selflessness, and loyalty is unmatched and irreplaceable. We all loved him, Commander, and we all miss him, but we need to move on. Do you think Rapid would want us remembering him has he laid dead on that cold, cracked concrete floor? No! Of course not! He would want us to remember him as a hero, as a friend, as a good person...not as the wasted shell of a dead soldier. You owe him that much, we ALL owe him that."

"Piermont...this is something that no amount of faith or knowledge will surrender. The nightmares might weaken, or we might grow tolerant to them to the point that we've been desensitized and their ineffective, but they will still be there. For the rest of our lives, Piermont, that day will haunt us...and we are hardly nine years old."

Piermont looked away, in shame, "I know, Alex...the nightmares are merciless, ruthless, and several times I've nearly given up on life because of that."

Alex looked genuinely alarmed, "How could you have hid it?"

Piermont shrugged, "Didn't think I did, maybe you were too worried about your current place to notice the mental and emotional well-being of your friends and dragon."

This caught Alex, and the latter pained him. He felt really bad now, caring only for himself, that he had forgotten his friend, and shied away the suffering of his own dragon...the one who had engaged in a fatal bond with Alex, having chose him over any other rider.

"Piermont...I'm sorry," Crying, Alex hugged the big dragon, never recalling loving him more, "Piermont..." Alex whispered, "I love you..."

"I love you, too..." The dragon replied, returning the hug.

The funeral service was short, and immediately after, Crash decided to treat the rest of Alpha Company to lunch. At The Beef House just past the Illinois-Indiana border, the Terminators sat around, eating the free rolls and jam at their table. Alex was the only one not eating, he seemed distant, spaced out, dreaming. The others just stared at him in confusion, only Piermont, fully understanding, did not, and he too seemed to be looking off into space.

Prodding the Commander's mind, they could pick up little, he wasn't thinking. Obviously, this wasn't the case, everybody thinks, so, somehow, Alex had completely severed the mental link to the rest of his troops, closing off his mind in a soundproof, impregnable, steel wall. Worried about what thoughts circulated in the Commander's eerily calm and solemn mind, Alpha Company was on edge...ready for anything. Whether or not Alex was suicidal, nobody knew, except Piermont.

However, Piermont also had severed the link, breaking off all connection, and rendering all attempts to prod into his mind invalid. They spoke amongst themselves, using their telepathy to their advantage. Alex and Piermont, having severed the mental line from the rest of the company, had no access to the mental bank unless they came out of hiding. If the Terminators couldn't hear their commanders, then their commanders couldn't hear them. Even if the commanders did try sneaking out of their mental fortresses and out of hiding, Alpha Company waited by the doors, waiting to storm his mind at the first signs of its opening.

They needed to know what was going on within the grief-stricken Commander's mind, they needed to know if there was cause for worry. His silence was unnatural, unhealthy, and they feared for his safety. They knew very well he was depressed, that Rapid's death had an especially painful effect on him, yet, they didn't know how he was reacting behind those closed mental doors.

Even Piermont, who, thanks to his notorious antagonism of the skunk, one would not believe would be affected, was taking Rapid's death hard. Whether this was a cause of his own, private admiration of the soldier, the Commander's grief being broadcasted very intensely via the Dragon/Rider mental bond, or a combination of both, no one knew.

All they knew was that something was wrong, and Great Commander Alex Vaughn needed help.

_When we get back_, Crash thought at the others, _I'm calling a psychologist. If intervention is needed, Alex is getting one._


	2. Chapter II: Lockup

_**Chapter II**_**:**

**-''Lockup''**

-**Connorsville, Illinois**-  
>-<em><strong>03 November 2002<strong>_-

-_**0718 Hours**_**-**

The sun rose slowly over the sleepy neighborhood, and Crash was preparing to make the call. By the time he had the opportunity to call the psychologist the previous night, the clinic had closed, so now he was calling, and praying that they could have an opening that same day. It was urgent that the commanders saw a therapist before they tried to do something stupid. Although Crash didn't want to not be able to trust Alex, at this point, it was better safe than sorry.

The others agreed, and Prancy and Cheet approached him. "What do we do?" the cub asked.

"Simple," Crash replied, "I need your guys' help to wrangle Alex and Piermont into submission."

"Ha!" Prancy stated, "Good luck with that. He's the Alpha Mutant and a hundred times stronger than us...he'd destroy us before we could even bat an eye!"

Crash replied, "I know...but it's worth a shot. Now hold on, I'm making the call."

Dialing the number of the clinic, he stepped through the French doors in the kitchen and outside into the backyard. Cheet glanced over at Prancy, "So, what are we going to do?"

"Nothing we can do," the reindeer replied, "But Crash is right, Alex needs help. As for Piermont...I don't know if his emotions are resulting from the broadcasted feelings of Alex, or his own grief...I also don't know his mental state, and whether or not he's suicidal, but either way, they need help."

"Agreed. I'm just worried about him, Prancy. I hate seeing Alex like this."

"Me too, Cheet, me too."

Crash reentered the house, closing his cell phone, "Okay, we got lucky. They have an opening at 4 PM, so we're going then. Just...be ready. Alex may be depressed and grief-stricken, but he's not stupid. He's highly intelligent, and odds are it's impossible to convince him we're going somewhere else other than where he really is."

"Yeah," Cheet said, "And the mutual mental bank doesn't help at all."

"Exactly!" Crash replied, "Prancy, Cheet, better start getting ready...this will be interesting."

Crash looked downcast as the time approached, he didn't want to do this...but he had to. Alex and Piermont were worrying him deeply, and he feared for their safety, to lose all three of the High Command, especially within days of each other, could very easily cripple the thriving Terminator Militia, and cause the army's downfall. They did not need to lose all they had spent so much time, effort, money, and lives to support and grow.

"Crash?"

"Yeah Cheet?"

"For the record, I _really_ don't want to do this...I just feel like we're betraying and losing faith in Alex."

"No...we're saving him."

"How? For all we know, he isn't suicidal, he just locked himself away to grieve in privacy?"

"Even if so, his isolation is not healthy. Haven't you ever seen _Pink Floyd: The Wall_?"

"No..."

"Well...anyway, we can't let him do this to himself. I would much rather anger him by sending him to a psychologist...and maybe even some small incarceration to ensure his safety, rather than attend two more funerals of my friends."

"Good point..."

"Indeed, are you ready?"

Cheet looked at the bottle of ether and the rag on the table, "Yeah, I'm ready, but I'm not happy."

"Then it's showtime. Prancy?"

"Yeah?"

"Go get Alex and Piermont. Cheet, man your position."

With a sigh, Prancy replied, "Yes sir."

"Yes sir," Cheet replied, obviously unhappy about what exactly they were doing.

Prancy knocked on the door to Alex and Piermont's room, then entered. "Alex? Can you and Piermont come here for a moment?"

Without a word or a sound, the duo stood and followed Prancy out. As the reindeer led them into the parlor, his distress of doing this to his friends obvious on his face, now turned away from the pair, Cheet sneaked behind them, ether-soaked rag in hand. "Forgive me, Alex," Cheet said, as he forced the rag against the Commander's mouth and nose. The alarmed commander struggled to break free, but soon, his muscles relaxed and he became a dead weight as the ether took effect. Slowly, Cheet lowered him to the ground, and Crash lowered Piermont to the ground as well, injecting him with the serum to force the human transformation.

"Okay," Crash said, "Let's get on with this shall we?"

Crash stopped in the parking lot of the local Carle Clinic, twisting in his seat to face a downcast Cheet and Prancy, handing them syringes, he injected the blood-red chemicals into his arm, motioning for them to do the same. Shuddering, Crash transformed into his human self, and watched as the others did too. "C'mon," he said, "Let's go."

'Human' Crash, a tall, lanky, Caucasian late-teen with curly red hair, hazel eyes, a freckled face, and clad in a white T-shirt with blue jeans stepped outside. Prancy was next, he was a tall, skinny, pale Caucasian teen with long, black hair, brown eyes, and clad in a polo sweater with blue jeans. Finally was Cheet, a short, pre-teen, dark-skinned kid with short, fuzzy black hair, big brown eyes, and clad in a orange T-shirt with blue shorts. Together, they helped the sedated Alex and human-form Piermont enter the clinic, advancing to the psychology sector.

"Alex and Pierre for Doctor Hermann, please?" Crash told the receptionist.

"Have a seat, he'll be with you shortly," she replied.

Alex, beginning to come to his senses, but still with the long-lasting anti-mutation sedative, asked, "Wh...where am I?"

Piermont added, "I...I can't move..."

"You can move," Cheet began, "But you can't use any powers."

"Who are you?" Alex asked, alarmed, trying to attack them, but he was too weak.

"It's us," Prancy said in his usual, nasally, heavily British-accented voice, "Prancy, Cheet, and Crash...or Perry, Jaime, and Charlie."

"What are you doing?"

Crash began, "We need to ensure everything is okay with you."

"What...?" Alex began.

Cheet interrupted, "You're gonna see a psychologist."

"Wait..._WHAT_!? Why in the hell didn't you just _ASK_ how we were?"

"You were isolating yourself from everyone," Crash said, "That's unhealthy."

"I wanted to grieve in privacy!"

Crash suddenly realized his mistake, and instantly regretted it.

"Dammit! We're leaving!"

"You can't," Crash said.

"And why the hell not?" Piermont asked, "And why am I a human...why are you all humans?"

"To maintain a low profile," Cheet said.

"Reason why you can't leave is because..." Crash began.

Suddenly, Doctor Hermann opened the door and said, "Alex and Pierre Vaughn?"

"...of that..." Crash finished.

Hermann spotted them and gestured them over. Telepathically, Alex told Crash, _You are going to regret this!_

Alex was led down the hall and forced to enter a tiny room with the others in tail. Piermont casted the Commander a sad and frightened glance, and Alex had no choice but to feel bad for the dragon. Alex wrapped his arm around the dragon's shoulders and patted his shoulder. Pulling Piermont closer, Alex whispered, "Don't worry man, things will go fine."

_Are you sure? _Piermont asked telepathically.

_Aye, everything will be fine._

"Please take a seat," Doctor Hermann said.

Unhappily, Alex and Piermont did as they were told, and Piermont smirked, "How long will this take?"

Crash jabbed Piermont's flank, and the dragon swore underneath his breath.

"As long as it takes, Mr. Vaughn," the doctor replied casually.

For some reason, the doctor's smoothness and casual tone pissed Piermont off even further. Alex placed a restraining hand against the dragon's shoulder, and the latter, still tense, eased a little bit. _Don't_, Alex told him telepathically, _You piss this guy off, we get dosed up on pills and tossed into an asylum._

_Still though_, Piermont replied.

_I know, control your anger, and things will go easily_.

The doc than began with, "Alex, Pierre, would you like your friends to leave?" 

"We'll stay, thanks," Crash replied.

Alex threw him a dangerous glare, and Crash suddenly stated, "Actually, we have some errands to run, we'll be back by the end of the appointment."

They left, and Hermann turned to the pair before him,"First things first, what are you currently feeling?"

Alex shrugged, retaining his silence, and Piermont looked away, desperately attempting to ignore the shrink.

"Okay then," Hermann continued, "What is bothering you?"

Silence.

Growing bold, Hermann asked, "Who passed away?"

This struck the pair, and they were unable to control their reactions. Betrayed by their body movements, the shrink smiled as he caught the source of the pair's depression.

"Who passed away?" He repeated, curious.

"Nobody," Piermont replied.

"Somebody did...who?"

"It's none of your damn business," Alex replied bitterly.

"Hey, no need to grow testy, I am only curious."

"A friend," Piermont replied, unable to restrain tears, much to his desperation.

"Suicide?"

"Murder."

Hermann seemed stunned by the admission, "_Murder_!?"

"Aye...er...yes."

"No, Pierre," Alex replied angrily, "He wasn't frigging murdered, he was a freaking casualty of war, a hero. To say he was murdered shows his weaknesses."

"A casualty of war? What war?" Hermann seemed genuinely confused.

_Careful! _Piermont warned telepathically, _We don't want to prove to him we're insane. To say Rapid was murdered is much more practical than saying he was KIA._

_He was a soldier!_

_Alex! Think! Nine year olds do not participate in war! At least not in America...you say Rapid was a casualty of war, and, if this guy is uneducated in the militia, we're labeled as delusional schizos. That's a label carried for life...a label I don't want._

_I refuse to lie, Rapid deserves to be labeled as a hero, and I don't give a damn what others think of the truth._

Secretly, within the impregnable privacy of the depths of his mind, unreachable by his rider, Piermont thought, _Jesus! Perhaps he's crazy after all!_

"Are either of you with us?" Hermann asked.

"Yes," both replied in unison.

"Good. Care to share the name of your friend?"

As Alex began, Piermont cut him off, "We'd rather not."

The Commander grunted angrily.

"Fair enough," Hermann asked, "Care to share what happened?"

Alex, before Piermont could interrupt again, began recounting everything that had occurred in the days following Rapid's demise. Piermont, wishing he was elsewhere, buried his face in his hands in a poor attempt to conceal his obvious humiliation. Doctor Hermann listened intently with genuine interest...and slight amusement at Alex's unbelievable story.

"Okay then," Hermann began, breaking the awkward silence that erupted after Alex finished his tale, "What happened, Pierre?"

"I just freaking told you!" Alex hissed.

"I would like to hear what Pierre experienced Alex."

"He was right there! He experienced the same crap I did!"

"Pierre, please go on."

Desperately searching for a creative fabrication to replace the outrageous, albeit true, tale of Rapid's death, Piermont began recounting his fabricated story, referring to Rapid as if it were a nickname instead of his true name. The way Piermont described Rapid was a near-perfect description of General Elliot, only much younger. Alex glared at the dragon, fire burning brightly in his eyes, and for the second time that day, Piermont questioned Alex's sanity. "Well..." Piermont began, "Robert 'Rapid' Elliot has been a friend and father figure if sorts for us, and he was taking us to get ice cream. Sadly, we were in a less-than-desirable neighborhood, and as we were waiting for traffic on the corner. Four men in gray sweaters sped by in a black SUV, opening fire with Uzis on Rapid."

The doctor seemed sad, but Piermont could feel the Commander's fury over Hermann's pity, a comparison like a volcano to a bonfire. Even though Piermont knew that he would no doubt hear from Alex once in privacy, the dragon couldn't help but to extract sick pleasure from Alex's fury

.

"Something to say, Alex?" Hermann replied, noting Alex's hating glance.

"Nothing at all."

Crash, Prancy, and Cheet waited outside as the door into the offices opened and a disgruntled Alex and Piermont walked out. Both seemed less than happy, and Crash knew he was in for it once they had a chance. "Excuse me..." the doctor said as he gestured Crash over to him.

Casting a frightened glance at a glaring Alex and Piermont, Crash hurriedly ran to the doctor who then led him back into the depths of the offices. "What's going on?" Crash asked.

"We...need to talk," the doctor replied.

"Why am I suddenly worried they messed something up?"

"I wouldn't necessarily say that..."

"Of course, the day I hear a doctor curse at me is the day pigs fly."

"That is not what I meant..."

"Anyways...moving on."

Doctor Hermann led Crash and the two others who followed him into the doctor's office, closing the door.

"Are we getting a psych evaluation now?" Cheet asked, bemused.

"Not at all," the doctor said, "But we need to talk about Alex and Pierre."

The doctor sat down in his leather chair gesturing for the trio to sit down across from them.

"So," he began, "Do you want the good news? Or do you want the bad news first?"

After an unsure glance with the others, Crash replied, "Start with the good news."

"Well, the _good _news is that Pierre passed. He is just grieving for his friend's death. His isolation, although frightening, is actually quite common following the death of a loved one."

"Okay then..." Crash began, "And the bad?"

"Alex did not."

"Pass?"

"No."

"How come?"

"He seems to be delusional, imagining that his friend was a bipedal skunk with a machine gun. He then crafted an imaginative story about how the 'skunk' was executed by a silver bullet to the head, which, although the skunk was supposed to be immune to, the silver in the bullet caused his blood to boil, and he died. He also kept referring to a war between 'The Terminators' and the 'LKA' and how he was, and you all are, active participants in. At first, I was wondering if he was just toying with me, but then, by the fear displayed in his eyes, I could tell that he honestly believed every word. He's delusional, and therefore he needs to get away for awhile until he can overcome his fantasies and return to the real world."

Crash struggled to hold back any sign that may tell the doctor that he too knew and believed that he was in the Terminator Militia, that he remembered the death as Alex had put it. As unlikely as it seemed, everything concerning Alex's 'delusions' was true. The doctor couldn't know that Crash knew they were real...just as much as he couldn't know that he was really talking to a talking cheetah cub, talking reindeer, and a talking orange bandicoot as well.

Instead, unsure of what else to say, Crash asked, "So...what do we do?"

The doctor, grim in demeanor, replied, "I think the best thing for Alex is to spend a week or two in a mental hospital."

"An _asylum_!? Why!?"

"He needs to get away from the rest of the world and live out through his delusions until he can return to the real world. At the...asylum...I'm talking about, he will have doctors that will care for him 24/7. Food, water, bathe...everything he needs, and at the same time, these doctors are trained to break whatever fantasies an individual is trapped inside."

"How long?"

"I would say a week or two for starters then after a psych evaluation, we can decide whether or not he's fit to be released."

"And if he isn't?"

"He stays until he does."

"Damn," Crash sighed. "Fine then. Thank you for your time."

"Thank you."

"Jesus...what have I done?" Crash asked, saddened and stunned as the trio left the doctor's office towards the waiting room.

"Don't beat yourself over it," Prancy replied, "It's not your fault."

"Still though...I mean...I seriously messed up big time."

"It's not worth complaining about," Cheet replied firmly, "We should be trying to figure out how in the bloody hell we are going to bust Alex out of this."

Crash, still enveloped by his grief and betrayal, continued, "How? The Commander is going to a damn INSANE ASYLUM! How in the _hell_ am I supposed to help this?"

"Easy," Cheet replied, "Reveal ourselves, and the truth."

"Then the authorities will take us in for experimentation, and Alex would still go into the asylum."

"Not necessarily..." Prancy replied, "If we reveal ourselves, Alex would be found to be telling the truth."

"Not exactly."

"How do you mean, Crash?"

"Think about it Prancy! Think about it! The doctors would more or less go in for their own psych exams. Besides, the fact we're here doesn't mean that Alex is automatically telling the truth about Rapid. True it makes it believable, but then Piermont's story will be worthless, and he might be charged."

"How?"

"I don't know, but I think it may be a crime to lie to a psychiatrist...especially about a murder."

"The hell will we do then?" Cheet asked.

"I don't even know anymore."

"How will Alex take it?"

"I'm not telling him."

"What?" Prancy started, "Are you serious? You must have lost your mind! We have to tell him!"

"How?"

"Remember what happened the last time someone withheld information from him?"

Crash shuddered as he remembered Jazz and his betrayal. "Don't remind me."

"We need to tell him...sure he'll be pissed...sorry, beyond pissed...but at the very least, you won't end up like Jazz."

"Still doesn't help the fear factor. Alex will be way more than pissed once he discovers my antics got him thrown into an asylum, and Piermont and him both have short tempers. They might just kill us without even realizing it...anger breeds murder."

"Good point..." Cheet sighed.

Then Prancy said, "Well...it technically was Alex's fault."

"How?" Crash asked, confused.

"He _could _have done what Piermont did, craft a more believable story."

"You know Alex would never do that. You know how he is about his soldiers. Especially Rapid, to tell someone that Rapid was an average human being who was gunned down...he would never downgrade the skunk. He loved that little bastard as if he was the Commander's own son."

Prancy sighed in exasperation, "True..."

"I don't know..." Crash said, voice low, surrendering, "Let's just see what happens."

"When does the bus arrive?"

"Next week."

"Damn."

"Yeah...I'm calling the school to let them know Alex won't be there for a few weeks."

"What will you tell them?"

"To send us his homework so we can take it to him."

"Jesus Christ...what have we done?"

"No Prancy," Crash replied bitterly, "What have _I _done."

Alex awoke early the next morning, unsure of what to expect of the day. According to Crash, Cheet and the others, there was something big supposed to happen. He didn't know what, but was curious as to what it was. Crash had kept his promise and had not told the Commander of his imminent stay at the asylum, and, much to his inner torment, he prayed that Alex would understand, that Alex would not harm him. Of course, the prayer was nothing more than a reassurance, because he knew very well that Alex's wrath would be unleashed upon him like a torrent upon the beach. There was nothing that could be done, save hiding Alex, and the Commander would not like that at all.

Without telling him, Crash had eluded to numerous ways how to trick the doctors at the asylum, how to break out and escape, he hid these well in random conversations he initiated with the boy. Yet, he never told the Commander the truth. Upon return to their house following the psychologist appointment, Alex had surprised and frightened his teammates by locking himself inside his bedroom. Piermont, still furious, did not explode in anger, in fact, he actually sat in place for hours, ignoring everybody, allowing his anger to slowly defuse.

Now the day had arrived, and Crash was tense as he realized that now Alex would know. He feared the outcome of his betrayal, he feared Alex would kill him upon realization that a few simple mistakes imprisoned the boy. Crash's only hope was that he didn't end up like Jazz so long ago.

Ever since leaving the doctor's office, Alex could see the obvious guilt Crash, Cheet and Prancy had. He had plans for punishment, then reconsidered once he realized that they only did it because they were worried for him. Since Rapid's death, he had grown ever more reclusive, grieving in silence, and severing the mental link. He knew that the others were not used to the absence of one of their members, and with three individual voices silenced-one forever, and two temporarily-they were naturally fearing the change. He could see why they were so concerned, and he suddenly felt bad for them. They didn't deserve to be separated from their commander, their leader, their friend, especially so soon after the intense pain and permanent, eerie silence that emerged from the late Rapid's former place in their mental bank.

Since the vacancy had appeared, everybody had avoided that area, and Alex, curious, had tried and failed to gather the courage to explore the mind of the dead man. Each time, he would grow terrified and flee, but now, his curiosity was to great to reject...here was the opportunity humanity had wanted for as long as they had existed...to see what death was like. Breathing deeply, Alex had sat on his bed, adopted a mediating posture, and completely retreated into the damp, cavernous depths of his mind. Once inside, he had felt his way among the darkness, groping for purchase as he followed a memorized route. Within what fell like minutes, but could physically take hours, Alex appeared on the outskirts of Rapid's mind.

The physical symbol of the door closing off everyone's mind to others was a massive, steel, blast door with three red lights above. As Alex approached, he saw that the door, usually open, was closed. The red lights were out, signifying the absence of the skunk from the physical world. Unable to stop now, Alex forced the doors open, mouthing words he didn't know...but knew...

"_Si meage thee nif, ifni di wer ricin di wer loex sthyr_."

With a spark of energy that pulsed through the Commander's veins, Alex suddenly watched as the door slowly opened...and his jaw dropped, as the world of the dead came into view. Before he had a chance to fully see the afterlife, he was forcefully snapped back into his body, awakening to find that he was gasping for breath, sweating, and terrified.

Alex, awaiting the 'surprise', decided to try again. Assuming the same position as before, he took a deep breath, mentally and physically preparing himself for this adventure. Fully relaxed, he closed his eyes and reentered the depths of his mind. He blindly navigated the dark caves once more, finding the door with relative ease and seeing that it was already open. Through the crack between the slightly open double doors, bright, blinding, yellow light speed through, flooding the area in an intense light and warmth. With a deep breath, he started pulling the massive door open, remembering that he was in here mentally, that his mental strength far exceeded his physical, and he remembered the aspect of mind over matter.

If he imagined the door as a simple door, then the blast door would only be as heavy as an average door. His ploy worked, and the immense door opened upon the world before him...before in the blink of an eye, the world of the dead disappeared, and Alex withdrew from his mind. It was terrifying, strange, unlike anything anyone had ever witnessed before, and Alex couldn't begin to describe it. Yet, within the seconds, all memory of the vision melted away, and Alex found himself unable to recall what he had witnessed. He made a motion to go back when Crash entered, "C'mon," the bandicoot started, sadness and regret thick in his voice, "It's time."

"Time for what?" Alex queried.

Crash didn't reply.

Upon entering the living room, Alex watched as Piermont, Cherub, Cheet, Prancy, all of Alpha Company, looked outside. Cherub was crying as she looked outside, and Alex instantly realized that Piermont had been torturing the girl again. "Who the hell is that?" The forest dragon asked, face contorted in an unhappy grimace.

"Your ride," Cherub replied, instantly brightening.

"Alex's ride actually," Crash replied.

Cherub frowned, obviously, she didn't like the separation from her bully.

"Piermont!" Alex hissed, "On me!"

"Invisible?"

"Aye, for now."

Alex felt a rush of wind as Piermont winked out of sight and the displayed air instantly filled the space formerly occupied by the dragon. _What now? _Piermont asked telepathically.

_Stay on me_, Alex replied.

_Yes sir, Commander._

Alex walked outside, cocking a Frinesi twelve gauge shotgun and taking aim. He said, "Oi! State your purpose!"

A tall, lanky man with slicked back black hair, glasses, hazel eyes, and clean-shaven emerged from the bus, donning a trench coat over a blue polo shirt with a black tie and khaki dress slacks. Raising his hands in surrender, the man asked, "Alex Vaughn?"

Alex lowered the barrel of the gun, loosening his grip on the trigger, "Yeah? Who's asking?"

"A friend. Mind putting your weapon down?"

Alex pretended to consider, then abruptly said, "Nope. I've learned the hard way not to lower your defenses when met with strangers. Properly identify yourself and state your purpose, then I'll consider standing down."

"My name," the man began, "Is Doctor Randall Carter Fox."

"Dr. Fox?"

"Yep."

"You mean the guy who tried to push that dinosaurs were really dragons?"

"Y...yes...you've obviously heard about me."

Alex raised his gun again, aiming at Fox, "Oh yeah, I know all about you."

Fox closed his eyes, then started when a clicking sound emerged from the gun. Fox opened one startled eye and spotted Alex releasing the hammer of the gun.

"Now," Alex said, handing the shotgun to a human Crash Bandicoot, "What brings someone of your stature all the way here. I thought you were busy at the University of Illinois, a psychology class if I'm correct? Quite ironic, considering your researching siding with the existence of dragons."

"U of I is just one of my many jobs."

"Really? Can't earn your living off Dragonian research?"

Fox detected a smirk in the Commander's sing-song tone. His eyes narrowed briefly, but he continued, "Not really."

"That sucks. So, what are you doing here?"

"Follow me," Fox said, and escorted Alex onto the bus.

Crash, mouth pressed firmly closed, watched as the bus too off. "Please don't kill me, Pierre. It's for the better...Pierre?" Crash glanced around, the invisible forest dragon was nowhere to be found, "Oh _sh..._"

Piermont sat in the aisle, as close to his rider as he could manage. "The place is roomy," Piermont whispered, "Too much white though...and too many crazies."

The aisles were wide, wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair. The bus' interior was almost entirely white, and lit up by a single stripe of fluorescent tube lights along the center of the ceiling. The floor was black, and resembled a school bus' floor. The windows were barred, and a bar, jail-like wall separated the passengers seating from the driver. Around them, adults and kids alike sat around, talking to themselves or each other, rocking, and doing various other odd things.

_I've got a bad feeling about this..._ Piermont thought to an alarmed and disgusted Alex.

_So do I, Pierre...so do I._

The bus slowed as it turned onto an old brick street. Alex and Piermont looked outside at the massive, 2 foot thick 20 foot tall stone wall surrounding the massive complex. Barbed wire lined the top of the fence in tangled piles. The complex was surrounded by oaks and maples, and the wall surrounded the hill on which a huge, prison-like building sat.

I_'ve got a bad feeling about this_, Piermont thought at his rider.

_Same,_ Alex replied.

_Where are we?_

_Damned if I know._

The bus finally stopped in front of a massive, wrought-iron gate, decorative, but Alex could tell it was electrified, he saw wiring entering the gate through neatly drilled holes in the hollow metal.

"Jesus Christ..." Alex said in awe.

_It's a freaking prison! _Piermont replied, stunned.

"Something tells me we should get the hell outta here."

_Pfft! Good luck _amigo_, check out the opposition!_

Alex looked around and saw the seven or eight doctors encircling the bus. Though they appeared to be just plain doctors, Alex could easily make out the bulge of Uzis beneath their lab coats.

_Uh oh..._

_What?_ Piermont asked his rider, alarmed.

_They're packing heat._

_What?_

Look at the outlines in the bulges of their waists. Also note how they stand, with a hand in there coat over what appears to be the grip of an Uzi.

_Son of a bitch...we've been set up._

_You're damn right!_ then, after some thought, _Of course!_

_What?_

_Of _FREAKING _course!_

_What! Tell me!_

_They knew!_

_Who? _but Piermont already knew who Alex was referring to.

"Take a guess, genius!" Alex hissed out loud, raising attention as the guards casted wary glances at him.

_Those no good sons of bitches!_

Alex could detect his dragon's anger, "At ease, Piermont," he had forgotten the dragon was invisible, and the boom of the forest dragon's mental voice sounded more real than not.

_No! Alex, we need to get out of here, and now!_

It was too late...

The guards moved in swiftly, quickly overwhelming and subduing Alex. The Commander retaliated, to no avail, as he struggled to fight off the guards and the drugs injected into his veins. Piermont, threatening to move to defend his rider, was prodded in the eye with the barrel of an Uzi, and he realized that the guards seemed to recognize him. They could sense him, of that he knew, as they realized that something was there, and he was allotted space. Even if they didn't consciously know he was there, they could sense his presence.

_Alex! _Piermont cried as he saw his sedated rider collapse under the weight of the sedatives. Piermont wanted to roar, to emerge into visibility, to defend his fallen friend and rider, but he thought differently, and instead chose to follow Alex inside the compound. As he walked, his strength wavered, and he threatened to emerge into visibilty, but he thought better, and pushed on to the very ends of his stamina, despite his overwhelming exhaustion.

Piermont struggled to remain awake as a still-subdued Alex was signed in, then he was taken into an isolated cell, and tossed in. He was strapped down in a metal bed, bolted to the floor hooked up to various monitors, and Piermont, using his Dragonian sense of sight, could see the three, green-glowing figures on the other side of the one-way window using his infrared vision. The room was filled with a noxious-smelling, clear gas, and Piermont's limbs gave out...and that was when his plan went awry.

The gas, though non-lethal, seemed to trap him invisible, he could re-emerge into visibility, he was trapped. The ability to remain invisible, however, no longer sapped his strength, and for that, the dragon was grateful. Exhaustion creeping in, Piermont laid down on the tile floor beside his rider, and, resting his head (now almost the size of Alex from neck-to-foot) on the Commander's chest, falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.


	3. Chapter III: Asylum Escape

**_Chapter III_:**

**-''Asylum Escape''-**

**-Saint Mary's Mental Hospital: Connorsville, Illinois-  
>-<em>15 November 2002<em>-  
>-<em>0221 Hours<em>-**

"_Alex!"_

"_Rapid!"_

"_Kill him! Kill this son of a bitch!"_

"_No..."_

"_I'll die anyways! If you don't kill him now, you might never get another chance!"_

"_RAPID!"_

"_NO!_" Alex shot up, breathing heavily. Piermont briefly cried out in alarm as Alex's sudden awakening caused him to bite his tongue. Blood dripped in a dark red stream from the dragon's mouth and onto the eerily clean floor.

"Alex!" Piermont cried, "Jesus Christ! Alex! Are you okay? What's wrong! Are you hurt?"

Alex, breathing returning to normal, shook his head, "No Piermont...I'm okay..."

"What happened?"

Alex gave the sympathetic dragon a pained glance, and Piermont instantly knew what was troubling him.

"It's about Rapid...wasn't it?"

"Aye..."

"Alex..." Piermont rubbed the side of his head against the Commander's cheek. Alex enjoyed the hard warmth of the dragon's scales, and appreciated the contact. He began to stroke the dragon's scales, concentrating at the base of his horns, right above one of the dragon's stunning emerald eyes, and Piermont replied by purring contentedly.

"Sorry for hurting you...here..." Alex gently lifted the dragon's chin as his hand adopted a faint blue glow, and blue sparks jumped across the point of contact. Piermont let out a little noise, almost like a laugh, and Alex realized that healing was tickling the dragon. In an instant, the blood stopped and Piermont wiped his chin, cleaning his paw of the red liquid.

"It's okay," the forest dragon replied, "Thank you."

"Sorry.."

"Don't worry about it, Alex," the dragon smiled and rubbed his head against the Commander's chest. Alex countered by gently stroking the dragon's head between his cracked, ribbed, tan, slightly curved horns.

From within the dark, glassy chamber overlooking the private observation room of the Commander, a group of five scientists observed the view. Fox looked upon the boy, stroking the air in front of him as if a cat was in his lap, with a look of pity and sorrow, "Poor lad," he said to his comrade watching beside him, "He seems so lonely."

Behind Fox, the three remaining scientists sat around a glass table, sipping coffee and playing poker, "The boy deserves no pity" the team leader, also the oldest, said in a gruff voice, "The boy is certifiably insane."

Fox replied, "Still though...he just seems so lonely."

The man, seemingly irritated, tossed his cards onto the table and slammed his fist against the surface of the table, vibrating the glass and making the coffee mugs jump. The others sitting around it swore and protested, "Dammit Fox!" the older man exclaimed, spittle flying across the room, "The boy is a freaking vegetable! He is so lost within the depths of his mind and fantasies that he doesn't know a single iota of reality. He's a deranged psychopath, and no amount of sympathy will break him of his delirium. All we can hope for is that his appointment with Doctor Mendoza is kept, and that he improves after his operation."

"I still don't think this is right..."

"It doesn't matter what you think, Fox. Nobody gives a damn about your opinion, you're low man on the totem pole, you're the rookie, you're the newbie. My judgment goes, and after dedicating forty years of my life to this career, I'd be damned if it was otherwise."

"It isn't right..."

The man was breathing heavily, his nostrils flaring, as if trying to bite back his obvious hatred towards Fox. It was no secret, Fox and his superior were mortal enemies, and neither one liked the other. :Listen to me, Fox," the man said, enunciating his words very carefully, "That boy in there, is a delirious piece of crap, a reject of society, something that should have never been granted the privilege to tread the earth. His kind degrades society, and once you have spent as long as I have dealing with his type, then you will know exactly what I mean, and I pray that you will understand why we feel how we feel, and we do how we do. That boy has never known real friends, he has never known reality, and thus, I highly doubt he's lonely, his reality allows him as many friends as he wants, and he is blessed to truly believe they are real."

"Still..."

"If I were you, Fox, I'd shut up now, else you might end up on the other side of the blade," said the man beside Fox.

Randall Fox shuddered uncontrollably, then, biting his tongue, he continued his observing and recording, feeling every bit as helpless as a newborn baby, and feeling as if the real human in front of him were nothing more than a guinea pig for experiments. _What can I do?_ Fox thought to himself, _Nothing...I can't do anything. I'm bound by orders, and as much as I don't want to believe it...he's right. _Fox sighed beneath his breath, hiding it from the rest of the group.

Alex seemed to glance at him, as if he was visible. Then, much to the doctor's alarm, Fox felt an intruding presence infiltrate his mind. The presence was alien, and the feeling was like nothing he had ever felt before, and never wanted to again. He felt naked, as if all his thoughts and secrets were exposed. Then, like a heavy weight upon his mind, a small but powerful voice spoke to him...the voice of a boy...the voice of _the_ boy.

_Don't..._ it said, _Please...we don't belong here...we don't. Please let us go, please return home to our friends and family._

_We? _was all Fox thought, and he felt, much to his relief, the alien presence withdraw from his mind.

However, the relief was short-lived, because a new presence stormed his mind, one much more powerful than the boy's, one much larger, much stronger, much deadlier.

_Yes, we,_ it said.

The mental voice of this second presence boomed, and Fox couldn't help but stiffen. His skin crawled and broke out in goosebumps, and he began sweating in fear as his skin paled, his stomach turned, and he felt sick. His compatriots noticed, and began asking him questions. Their alarmed and worried voices were canceled out as the large voice continued, _My name is Piermont, dragon to the boy in here...he speaks the truth. We are not mad, far from it, we are just grieving._

There was no doubt in Fox's mind they were grieving, both voices were heavy with sadness and mourning, they both had lost someone close just recently. As their minds were linked during this telepathic conversation, Fox could pick out small pieces of their thoughts and memories. The voices stood between him and the thoughts, like a rock blocking a view, and Fox, while struggling to construct mental barriers in defense against the alien voices, dared not to venture far into their minds to explore. Though his curiosity into the mind of a madman was obvious and understandable, a being with this power was dangerous, and Fox didn't know what they could do to him...even if he was safe in the room.

Piermont's voice continued, _You do not need to build a mental wall to keep us out of your memories, we will not intrude._

Fox's blood ran cold as the voices noticed his intentions.

_We mean you no harm,_ Piermont continued, _We're just confused...lost...we need answers...what's going on?_

"I should ask you the same question," Fox said out loud, beneath his breath.

The massive voice of the dragon withdrew, and Fox felt even more relieved...but also empty...as if the dragon's voice was a massive plug that had lain in his mind for an unknown length of time, only to be removed and have a empty space replace it. He felt as if the voice of the dragon caused a gaping hole in his mind, one that would never close.

The small voice of the boy returned, now seeming familiar and safer, kinder, less harmful, than that of the dragon, _We have abilities like those of which you could never imagine._

"Who are you?"

Suddenly, a flood of thoughts, memories, all holding the identity of the boy before him, entered his mind, overwhelming his brain. It was as if a massive floodgate had been opened fully, allowing a wall of water to slam and obliterate the town beside it. The boy's flood of memories ceased, and Fox felt a brittle snap as a new...much larger wall of thoughts and memories slammed him. The new flood...all from the dragon, was nearly crippling, and Fox collapsed, fearing for his life as he seemed to be crushed by the assaulting flood. His comrades were instantly to his side, but he couldn't feel them, couldn't see them, all his senses were overwhelmed as the one (or is it two?) in the room before him shared their identities with him.

Eventually, the floods subsided, along with the intruding voices, and Fox returned to the physical world. He felt cold, naked, utterly exposed, and he found it difficult to control the onslaught he had just witnessed...however...he now knew the beings in the room before him...he knew them inside and out, their origins, their thoughts, their likes, their dislikes, their loves, their hates...everything. The amount of information about the boy was crippling. In his short life, the boy and his invisible dragon had witnessed much more than he could possibly imagine. They were soldiers, having seen the ravages of war, having seen torture, death, destruction...everything.

It was unbelievable, and Fox wondered if he had just had a vivid dream. Yet, the massive, gaping hole in his mind where the overwhelming presence of the dragon had been was noticeable, and Fox knew it wasn't a dream. _What the hell?_ he thought in awe, _What just happened?_

Recess hour gripped the asylum, and Alex sat on a bench in the courtyard, ignoring the bitter wind as he talked to Piermont. Mental patients surrounded them, mouths agape, and Alex was unsettled to realize they could see Piermont as clear as Alex himself could. Meanwhile, irritated guards struggled to keep the crowd away, yet more often than not a patient ended up being brained by a billy club if they so much as made a noise of unhappiness.

Alex couldn't believe the brutality of the guards, the patients were abused, misused, women were raped by a lusty guard, and there was nothing that could be done. They were all crazies, animals, people who weren't people...who didn't deserve to be allowed to live. "Son of a bitch..." Alex mouthed, watching the mistreatment.

"Jesus..." Piermont said, "Those poor sons of bitches."

Suddenly, Fox approached from behind the reclining duo, "Unbelievable."

"What is?" Alex replied, tying a long blade of grass into knots.

"This abuse."

"There's nothing you can do to stop it?"

"I wish there was," a few minutes of silence, and then, "Is Piermont with you?"

Telepathically, the dragon told him, _Of course! I'm always with him._

"Ah," Fox said, shuddering at the eerie contact, "I see."

_We've been through hell and back together, I'm not about to lose him anytime soon._

"That's understandable."

_You're damn right!_

"Listen, perhaps you should know your fate...though we're not supposed to talk about it..." Fox then informed the duo on there fate.

"Son of a bitch!" Piermont physically said, alarming Fox at having heard the dragon's voice for the first time. Alex started patting the air, and Fox decided he was petting his dragon's head.

"At ease, Piermont, we have time..." Alex said.

"Hardly enough!"

"Our chance will come soon."

"To ensure me you aren't crazy, can Piermont reveal himself to me?"

Piermont's mental voice returned, seemingly sympathetic, _I wish I could...but whatever they gassed us with when we first arrived made me entirely invisible with no current cure._

"Oh..." Fox said, "Those are strong tranquilizers, they'll wear off within two days."

_Good!_

Fox glanced at his watch, "Well...playtime's over, back into your cell."

"Alex..."

Alex suddenly awoke, glancing around quickly, searching for the source of the all-too-familiar voice who spoke to him.

"Alex..." came the angry, yet friendly, voice of Rapid.

At first, Alex couldn't believe it, his jaw dropped, and he was filled with an intense sense of joy and happiness, "It was all a dream...you are still alive!"

Then...the Commander saw on his friend's forehead, the exit wound. It hadn't healed, but the blood had welled up in it, giving the wound a thin, bubbling, red goo covering the injury. Dried blood ran down Rapid's forehead, curving around his now-aqua-formerly-emerald eyes, and resting on his left cheek.

At the Commander's sentence, the skunk's face took on an expression of complete disappointment, and sadness. Even Rapid was grief-stricken over his 'death'.

"No," he replied slowly, as if he wanted it to be true, "I'm dead...fallen on the cold stone of that hangar floor."

"But you're right in front of me."

"No, I'm not."

Alex noticed how everything held a dream-like quality, and he was overcome with despair at the dawning realization. Rapid, treading carefully, as if gripped by arthritis, sat beside his friend on the bed, and let out a heavy sigh. Though he was addressing Alex as he spoke, he stared at the space before him, a look of realization and acceptance writ on his face. "Do not mourn for me Ali, don't."

Alex felt tears begin to fill his eyes, only Rapid called him Ali, and not unkindly either. The bond they shared was a weaker one to that which Alex and Piermont shared, but Alex was still more bonded with the skunk than the others in his army.

"I will mourn for you, Rapid."

"There is no sense in it," he spoke slowly, carefully enunciating every word, "You are better than this. You know not to linger around a fallen friend, you told me yourself."

"You're different."

"No, I am not."

For the first time since his arrival, Rapid looked directly into Alex's eyes. Alex was unsettled by the pain and suffering that was displayed in them...and the fear...what was he enduring in the afterlife?

"What happened to you, Rapid?"

"More than you can possibly imagine...to explain to you what I see..." Rapid shook his head slowly, carefully, as if wary of some kind of injury, "It would surely drive you mad."

"According to some, I'm already mad."

"But you aren't, you know that, I know that, Piermont knows that, the others know that, and Fox knows that."

"Look where I am!"

"I wish I could...I only know you see the asylum, what I see..."

"It's Hell...isn't it?"

"It's not Hell, but it's not Heaven either."

"What is it then?"

"I do not know. All I know, is that if I didn't know any better, you seem to be in the same place as I am at the moment, whereas you see the asylum, I'm seeing the place I've seen since the moment I passed on."

"Come back to us...I know you can."

Rapid smiled, a sad smile, "I wish I could Alex...I owe you that much. Sadly, it can never be. I can't even relax until I have paid for my sins."

"I thought Christ did that for us?"

"For mortals maybe...not for mutants."

"What have I done?"

"Nothing you could have prevented. Everything that has happened...that is happening...that will happen...is destined, there is no changing. None at all."

"What can I do to ease your pain?"

"Nothing...I will carry on and pass through what I deserve, then I will finally relax when the time comes."

For the first time, Alex noticed how thin and sickly Rapid was...corpse-like...and how his matted fur was charred.

"I have a message for you, Alex."

"What?"

Rapid turned to face his friend, even as he slowly began to fade away, "Carry through, break out, and remember that you should follow the dreams."

"What are you talking about?"

"Take care, and No-Tongue warns: Beware the Dark Man."

"Who is the Dark Man?"

"Farewell..." Rapid's voice was slowly becoming more distant, as if carried by the wind. "Awaken...awaken...for the time is here...the time is here..."

"Rapid, wait! _DON'T GO!_"

"Awaken, Alex..."

"Rapid!"

"Wake..."

"...up! Wake up goddammit!"

Alex was suddenly aware that Piermont was shaking him. Doctors surrounded them, mistakenly believing that Alex was trapped in the grip of convulsions. The Commander abruptly shoved his dragon away, and the doctor's paused as silence permeated the room. Obviously, they were confounded.

Piermont moved to help Alex up, but the Commander just shrugged him off, saying, "For the love of...leave me alone, Piermont! I'm fine! I'm fine! I don't need help!"

The massive crowd of doctors spread apart as an older man...the head doctor, approached the Commander. He walked up to Alex, toying with a knife as he said, "Now Mister Vaughn, Piermont is not real."

"He is, too. He just is backing off for now," Alex casted his still-invisible dragon an angry glance.

"See?" the man began, turning to his compatriots, Alex could see Fox towards the heart of the crowd, "This is why we need to give them lobotomies. In fact, this young man is scheduled for one later today."

Alex's heart sank as he realized what was in store for him.

_Damn..._ Piermont thought. The doctor shoved his way through the crowd and out of the room. Angry, Piermont broke his silence for the second time since their arrival. "_BACK AWAY FROM HIM YOU GODDAMN ASSHOLES!_" Piermont hissed out loud.

Stunned by the dragon's angry, booming voice from nowhere, the doctors jumped back as Piermont blew a great stream of fire. In the eyes of the doctors, the fire seemed to materialize from nowhere. In an instant, the charred skeletons of the doctors collapsed into ash, coating the the sterilized tile floor.

"We need to get the hell outta here!" Piermont exclaimed.

Suddenly, a swarm of uniformed soldiers entered. They moved in, as Alex struggled to fend for himself. "Piermont! Can you materialize yet?"

"Yeah...I've been able to since yesterday morning..."

"What?"

"Well...yeah."

Infuriated, Alex hissed, "Materialize, goddammit, before I freaking castrate you!"

"Alright! Alright! Jesus...no need to be such an ass."

The dragon materialized in a flash of light and filled the room with fire.

"Help me!" Alex demanded, as Piermont cut the heavy leather belts strapping him in place.

The Commander stood, grabbing two of the Uzis, "Let's high-tail it out of here!"

He charged through the halls, now-visible Piermont causing the various doctors to freeze in place, backing away.

More of the uniformed men rushed in, opening fire towards the Commander and his dragon. The sprinkler system activated as Piermont's flames burned across the tile floors. The hallway, slick with water, immediately began to grow red as staff and inmates were gunned down by the clouds of bullets. Alex fired back, killing his attackers with pinpoint accuracy, honed after years of military experience.

"Follow me!" he commanded, reaching down to grab ammunition from the piles of corpses.

Piermont followed him as Alex ran through the maze of hallways, gunning down anyone who got in their way. As Alex saw it, any casualties were but collateral damage, and so he gunned down everyone, staff, security, and patients alike. Eventually, he found his way to the office floor, and after stealing back his uniform from what he presumed to be the older man's office, he ran into Fox as he ran back into the bloody hallway. Reflexes kicking in, Alex immediately aimed and cocked his weapons as Fox shot up his arms and exclaimed, "Don't shoot! Take me with you!"

Refusing to lower his weapon, Alex asked in a dark voice, "And why shouldn't I? You're in this, too."

"I'm innocent! I swear! Take me with you, please!"

"Your job?"

"I don't want it! It's too immoral! I can't take it anymore."

"Your superiors?"

"They can die for all I care."

Alex finally lowered his weapon, reloading it and cocking it, "And so..." he began, "They shall."

Turning to his dragon, which Fox couldn't help but gawk at, Alex said, "C'mon Pierre, we have work to do. Let's kill that bastard."

"Sir, yes sir," Piermont replied, smiling in sadistic pleasure. With a deafening roar and a pillar of flame spewed into his mouth, Alex and his dragon continued through the halls, Fox stumbling behind in tail as he reached down and picked up an Uzi from a fallen guard.

Distant police and fire sirens blared, sounding through the eerily empty halls as they searched room after room for the head doctor. Eventually, they happened upon an operating room where the head, surrounded by two or three other doctors, was beginning a lobotomy on one of their patients.

"Oi!" Piermont crooned, roaring and shooting fire into the air, "Time to pay you worthless piece of crap!"

The doctors around the older man dropped their scalpels and ran out of the room. The older man, terrified, stood frozen in place, trembling as a dark spot grew on the slacks between his legs, and a steady stream of urine poured down his pants and shoes, gathering in a puddle around him. Alex fired two short bursts, and a cloud of shot from the other side of the man's knees as he collapsed in a cry of pain that only the elderly could manage. Then, Alex tossed aside his Uzis, reaching into his military slacks and withdrawing a single P2K. He approached the kneeling man, a fixed look of indifference and eerie tranquility on the Commander's face as the older man cried and pleaded for his life.

"Please, sir! Spare me! I didn't know!"

Alex whacked the man in the temple with the butt of the pistol and said in an eerily calm voice, "It doesn't matter whether you knew or not, the acts you've committed in this damned place are too horrific to imagine, and it is time you meet your judgment."

"Don't! Please! I'll do anything! Anything!"

"The time for mercy has long since passed, see you in hell."

Alex lowered his pistol, placing the cold, water-covered barrel hard against the man's forehead, and the crying man squeezed his eyes shut as Alex depressed the trigger, indifferent to the deafening crack as the bullet fired, or the splatter of blood and gray matter on him as the man went down.

His act of vengeance accomplished, Alex broke from his eerily calm trance and gracefully scaled Piermont's tail, settling himself between the dragon's neck spines as he helped Fox clumsily scramble onto the dragon's back. "Hold tight," the Commander said as Piermont hopped into the air, crashing through the ceiling and spreading his wings as his swift ascent slowed. With a final roar, Piermont shot forward, as he shimmered into invisibility again, and the army of police, fire trucks, and ambulances surrounded the burning building.


	4. Chapter IV: Soldier's Folly

_**Chapter IV**_**:**

**-''Soldier's Folly''-**

**-Connorsville, Illinois-**

**-_25 December 2002_-**

**-_2033 Hours_-**

Christmas approached quickly for the army, perhaps...too quickly. As the night slowly gave way, closer to Christmas Day, Alex found himself sitting on the couch in the living room...alone...thinking over everything that had occurred in the past year. Upon his and Piermont's return from their little...'Psychological Retreat'...he had chosen to fume in silence. It was obvious that Crash seriously regretted even considering Alex for the psychologist...but he at least could have informed the Commander of his imminent voyage to the asylum.

The anger boiling deep inside both Alex and his dragon could barely be bottled by their silence, and Alex had to leave the area to shout and swear in silence. However, he was still glad to be back with friends.

Fox had at first been terrified of the soldiers he met, but within a week, he befriended most of them, and now served as the doctor of the army. Crash still remained the medic, but had been demoted to battlefield medic, serving only when in battle. Alex considered this as his punishment, though endangering the bandicoot by handing him a rifle, a pistol, and throwing him out into the heat of battle did make him feel as if he was betraying his friend.

The shock of Rapid's death had slowly declined, and Alex was finally starting to reach the acceptance stage of his grief. True Rapid had died, but Alex's slightly stretched story concerning the skunk's death had displayed him as a hero who died in valor, sacrificing his life for his friends. Much to Alex's surprise, President George Bush had consulted him, wanting to posthumously award him the Congressional Medal of Honor. The guilt of seeing how much his lies had done was thrown aside as he realized that accepting the award...although unfair...would concrete this story.

As the shock of Rapid's untimely death dissolved, the Terminators found themselves growing more and more active. Multiple times a day, Alex sent patrolmen and tanks to ensure the town's safety, especially once news broke that Chicago had closed down a well-known and notoriously violent ghetto and was shipping the residents down to Connorsville. Alarmed and frightened of the wave of vicious criminals arriving daily, the Terminator Militia had upped their security, hoping to quell any violence. No such luck...

The criminals, gangbangers, rapists...they were growing even more violent, and bold. They often ambushed patrols, proving their superiority over everyone else. Alex could do nothing to stop the onslaught, and his parents were even now searching for a new place to move with no luck.

As Alex thought over all of this, he slowly began to drift off, surrendering to sleep. With the Commander down, everyone in the household was asleep, and the night grew old, as snow lazily drifted down from the heavens.

Crash suddenly awoke, startled by a strange noise from outside. Groaning, he sat up, stretched, and made his way to the bathroom. After relieving himself, he noticed the sounds again, and moved to the living room to investigate. He had never believed in Santa Claus, never thought he could exist. However, as he walked to the window and looked outside through the haze of snow, he noticed a distinct shape out in the street...sleigh, reindeer...

_What the hell?_ he thought, as he prepared to go outside and investigate. Suddenly, something caught his eye, and upon looking outside he saw one of the reindeer, iconic with a glowing red bulb before him.

_Rudolph...? _the bandicoot thought in disbelief, _No...can't be. _Yet they held their glances, and suddenly, Crash reached out to the reindeer's mind, attempting to make contact. The reindeer alarmed him by seizing control of his mind and merging their consciences. _What the hell!_ Crash mentally cried out in alarm.

_Don't be scared,_ the reindeer thought at him, _I don't want to hurt you._

_You sound excited._

_You are the Great Commander of the Terminators?_

Crash smiled, _No, not at all. Why do you ask?_

_I've heard so much about you guys! I wish I could join..._

_Ha! Good luck at that._

Rudolph recoiled, as if taking offense to the comment, _I'll find someway to join, I promise I will._

_Why would you want to?_

Rudolph's mental voice now took on a sad quality, _I think you are the only ones who will truly respect me._

Crash couldn't help but to feel bad for the reindeer. _I haven't seen the last of you, Rudolph...haven't I?_

_Not at all._

Then Rudolph severed the mental link as a dark figure...no doubt Santa Claus himself, climbed into the sleigh and disappeared into the blizzard.

For several minutes, Crash stood in place, shocked by the experience. Just like Alex and Piermont had with the boy on 9/11, Crash knew he hadn't seen the last of Rudolph. As exhaustion overwhelmed him, Crash returned to his bed, and fell asleep as the night brightened, and the blizzard continued on.

Crash refused to tell the Commander, or any of the others for that matter, about his conversation with Rudolph, or the fact that he even saw Santa Claus. He labeled it as unimportant, and not worthy to repeat, but perhaps there was another reason to it, one of which he couldn't identify.

The only news he had to tell his comrades was of that type that he-as well as they-dreaded the most. They had been recruited for another mission...on Christmas. The entire morning, Crash waited, searching for the opportunity to pass on his dreaded news, however, that time didn't come, and eventually, Crash had no choice but to tell them then and there.

"I've got bad news, guys," he said, dread filling his voice.

Alex, relaxing on the couch as he sipped from a can of Mountain Dew, replied, "Don't tell me...mission?"

"You hit the nail dead on the head, I'm afraid."

"Ah _hell_!" Piermont swore, unhappy.

"Yeah yeah...I know," Crash replied, embittered, "Unfortunately, that's one of the perks of running an entire goddamn military."

"But it's freaking Christmas!" Piermont exclaimed.

"I know! But, there is nothing I can do about it."

"Where are we assigned to?" Alex asked, "Tell me that much, and THEN I'll decide how to react, and what's the grade?"

"The Serengeti, and...it's a security check."

"Where to?"

"Pride Rock."

Alex brightened, then darkened as he feared confronting Mufasa again, especially considering he 'kidnapped' Kovu and Kiara. "Great...fan-freak-tastic."

Crash shrugged, "Sorry to be the bringer of bad news, but duty calls..."

"And we have to answer," Piermont finished, annoyed.

"Precisely."

Piermont repeatedly banged his head against the floorboards, "GOD DAMN IT _ALL!_"

"Sorry, we gotta go."

"When?"

"We're to leave tonight."

"Son of a..." Piermont began, groaning.

As they approached Connorsville airfield, Alex couldn't help but to feel annoyed at the situation. Taken away from his family during the holidays, only to go to the last play he would rather be at. "Piermont," he began, "Watch my back here."

"Yes sir, I'm much bigger and stronger now than I was the last time we were there."

"I know."

"That freakin' king decides to confront us again, I'll rip his goddamn throat out and tear his balls off."

"Don't feel bad, guys," Crash began, "All of Alpha Company is deployed."

"For a simple security check?" the Commander replied.

Crash shrugged, "I don't know, all I know is that Elliot seemed urgent to get us out there."

"I wonder why?"

"Damned if I know."

"Hopefully it's nothing more."

"We can only pray so."

As the sky continued to darken, the helicopter carrying Alpha Company arose into the chilly skies, and took off to the east.

The thoughts and fears of what was to come and what could happen gripped Alex, making him feel sick to his stomach. The thoughts weren't uncommon, Crash referred to them as 'Pre-Battle Jitters' and everyone, even the most hardened of veterans, felt them. As the helicopter was cleared for landing, Alex was overwhelmed with a feeling that something bad was going to happen here, that he had best run away, and not return.

Still, his loyalty to the mission prevented him from following his instinct, or the impression that had been left upon him. Never before had he turned down a mission, or 'half-assed' it. When he was given missions, he did them, and to the very best of his ability.

Kovu approached the Commander, Cheet (the lion cub's best friend) was following close behind, as per usual. "I have a bad feeling about this Alex."

"As do I, Kovu, but I refuse to be bothered by it."

"What if something bad happens?"

"Nothing will."

"What if something does?"

"Then we'll deal with the consequences later, now c'mon."

The Commander turned to head to the terminal where the rest of their squad was waiting, but Cheet ran up and called, "Wait, but Alex..."

The Commander paused, but didn't turn around, he merely turned his head to the side and looking back with his peripheral vision, "What?"

"Perhaps there's a reason why this mission feels this way over others?"

"Perhaps...but that has yet to stop me, and I refuse to be stopped by it, now come on, let's go."

Cheet and Kovu exchanged unsure glances, then caught up with Alex and followed him.

"Why in the bloody hell are we in this damned place?" Cherub asked, embittered. She and Piermont were walking beside Alex's right flank. Piermont's ruthless torture since her arrival had hardened her, toughened her, and now she resisted the dragon, often countering with clever, painful, and stunning insults of her own, where before she would shy away from him and fear him. If Piermont even tried to attack her, or hurt her, she would dodge with effortless grace, and counter, crippling him, and besting him every time.

Piermont, consequently, had taken to admiring her more and more, and his torture became more playful and less vicious, and though he found it hard to believe, he thought he was developing a crush on her. "Damned if I know," he said, "But this mission does have a screwed up feeling to it."

"Agree," Cherub replied, and they smiled at each other, as if passing some kind of secret joke.

As Alpha Company moved across the desert plain, in perfect formation, Pride Rock came into view as the sun began to set. Upon the shroud of darkness falling over the land, Alex called for camp. As the company sat around a roaring bonfire, roasting wildebeest they had hunted, they exchanged ideas of what they thought they were going to experience during the mission. Neither of which suspected what really laid in store for them.

Prancy was the first to speak, "I'm pretty sure that this mission will be nothing more than a security check, maybe with some improvements made."

Crash replied, "I agree with that, I can't see what can go wrong with this."

Cheet laughed and replied, "Yeah, and that's what Rapid said before we were kidnapped."

After realizing he had mentioned the deceased skunk's name, he sent a terrified glance at the Commander, realizing his mistake. However, the Commander seemed not to notice, or if he did, he showed no motion. Instead, he replied, much to the cub's amazement, "Exactly. If he would have kept his friggin' mouth shut, maybe he wouldn't have jinxed us," he said this with a bit of admiration and amusement in his voice, as if recalling a funny memory instead of the beginning of the skunk's fate.

Cherub then added her ideas, "I think we have a few surprises, I have a rather bad feeling about this. It also doesn't help that everywhere we go, trouble follows us. Also, why would Elliot send the entire company for a simple mission?" After saying this, she caught an approving glance from the forest dragon beside her, and she secretly smiled, she was also developing something of a crush on him.

"Me too," Piermont added, "But...I'm loyal to the mission, and though I complain a lot, I have never turned down a mission. As for Elliot's sending us all, I dunno, maybe he's paranoid."

"Then why send all the extra weapons and supplies?"

"Who knows? Maybe precautionary after our rather...checkered...history with Mufasa? We kidnapped his son and the girl, he was not happy. Now we kidnapped, albeit unknowingly, two more of his pride after returning the first pair. Still though, I will not back down from this mission."

"And we never will," Cherub finished, and once more was the object of an approving nod from Piermont.

Alex, cleaning and oiling the stock of his AK47, then asked without looking up, "How about you Sonic? Any ideas?"

"I have to side with Prancy and Crash on this one."

"So do I," Knuckles said, smirking, he then added, "But I hope we have a little fun," he then made a show of inspecting the spikes jutting from his knuckles.

"Eh...I have mixed feelings..." Tails stated, unsure of what else to say.

Crash's dragon, Drake, then replied with, "Me too, as I'm sure does the vast majority of us."

"Seems to me," the Commander replied, "That the vast majority thinks nothing will go wrong."

"You know what I meant, Commander."

"Yeah..." Alex checked the roasting meat and said, "I think it's done, let's eat and get some rest. We still have quite a walk ahead of us."

Alex awoke the others at the break of dawn, and after a quick breakfast of leftovers from the previous night's supper, they were once more headed to the distant Pride Rock. As they grew closer and closer, everyone slowed more and more, all were hesitant to go there, and though they knew it was a mission they had to complete, neither one wanted to take part in it. Already they were on Mufasa's bad side, and when Alpha Company met with them again, and revealed that they had kidnapped two more from the pride, there would be hell to pay.

Unconsciously, Alex cocked and loaded his dual-wields, ready to defend himself and his squad if needed be. As they approached the ramp leading onto the rock, the Commander and his party switched off the safety of their weapons. They paused at the base of Pride Rock, catching their breaths and building up the courage to scale it. With a heavy sigh, Alex stepped onto the rock, and the others, breaking formation for the first time as they clustered together, followed closely. On the rock, they crept closer to the gaping mouth of the cave where the pride stayed, and they all triggered their night vision, ignoring as the light from the sun was intensified tremendously.

Together as one, they entered the massive cave, cringing from the thick smell of death and decay that clung to the area and permeated the air around. Alex skirted a puddle of blood, and found himself concerned as he saw the bloody drag marks leading deeper and deeper into the cavern. "Stay alert," he commanded his forces, "Be prepared for anything."

A stream of 'sir, yes sirs' erupted from the huddled mass.

As they entered the main cave of the system, a familiar baritone sounded throughout the cavern, "Welcome back, I've been expecting you,Commander."

"Mufasa?"

"Who else?"

Alex twisted around as two hulking lions blocked out their way out.

_Uh oh!_ Piermont thought at his rider, _I have a bad feeling about this..._

_As do I, Piermont...as do I._

Alex then felt dread settling within him, and for the first time in his life, he began to panic as he realized they were trapped...he realized that he wanted to abandon the mission, to go back home. Then...Alex realized why Elliot had commissioned all of Alpha Company. The general must have been expecting violence from the lions, by far their most short-tempered of allies.

_God,_ Alex silently prayed, _Let me survive this, let me and my friends survive this..._

Fear...that's all Alex could feel as he stared into the cold eyes of the lion before him. Twice now he has kidnapped cubs from the pride, the last time was accidental, but that still didn't spare him from whatever surprise Mufasa had in store for him. _What do we do, Alex_? Crash asked mentally.

_You tell me, Sergeant_, Alex asked embittered, _You are the one that sent us out to this damned wasteland_.

_I was following orders from Elliot, perhaps I should have expected confrontation_.

_Of course, it's not like we stole TWO DAMN CUBS FROM THEM!_

_How was _I _supposed to know_?

_You're the oldest member here besides myself, Crash, you should know better than this_.

_And you are our Commander! Alex, _you _are supposed to know what to do_.

_I didn't want to have to confront him_.

_You forget about the cubs...didn't you._

_They're here with me, it's quite difficult to forget_.

_Any ideas_? Piermont telepathically asked.

_That_, the Commander began, _Is what we're trying to figure out_.

_Well, we better freaking decide now, before it's too late._

"Anything to say, _Commander_?" Mufasa asked, his deep baritone heavily laced with fury and blood lust.

"Nothing at all, sir," Alex replied, his voice steady, despite how he felt.

"Explain to me why you stole two more of our cubs?"

"He didn't steal us," Kovu said, stepping forward, "We stowed away."

"And why would you do that?"

"Well..." Kovu cast an embarrassed glance at Kiara, "We kinda wanted an adventure."

Mufasa remained silent as he pondered what the cub had spoken, then, he roared loudly, and it was all Alex could manage to keep from flinching, "Lucky for you, _Commander_, I am in need of your services."

Alex seemed stunned, although relieved. His relief was increased when the two guards moved away from the entrance, granting them an escape if they decided to take it. However, Alex, wanting badly to take any idea to ensure he remained on Mufasa's good side, asked, "How can I help you, sir?"

"My son, Simba, has run off."

Alex seemed stunned, "Wait...what? Why? Is he okay?"

"We don't know, he ran away several days ago, and despite our best attempts, we have yet to find him."

"This wasn't a security check then..." Crash said, realization dawning.

"Not at all."

"If Elliot would have mentioned Simba, perhaps we would have been more accepting of this mission."

"Then again," Alex began, "We would have gotten more excited over this."

"True...so the old boy wanted to surprise us?"

"Apparently so," then, to the lion, "Any idea where he could be?"

"We wish we knew, we figured considering you share a mutual mind bank, you can locate him. If you can find him and return him safely to us, you can consider all memory of your past betrayals...and this most recent...forgotten."

"I...am interested, but I need something more of a guide. This damned desert is a sea of life, to pinpoint one individual is much more difficult than you might imagine."

"Even with your mind bank?"

"Aye."

"Fine, we have no idea as to where he is. I figure you might as well check his little secret hideouts throughout the desert. There are too numerous for us to trace, and I figure he would have told you of any of them in the past."

"He's mentioned a few..."

Alex smiled as he remembered what Simba had privately consulted him on several occasions. During the endless days where they were forced to endure the tortures of their former daycare, back when his love for Nala started developing past friendship, he had mentioned to Alex of a special place where he would want to mate with her, if ever came the chance.

Alex decided that the canyon he had spoken of would be there best spot to begin. He had explored it for awhile while they were heading to where the Thornberrys camped, and he remembered a little niche eroded into the side of the cliff, one large enough to easily hold a 3000x3000 living quarters. He decided he could make camp there, and the high vantage point would give him a chance to keep an overall lookout for the cub if he were to arrive.

"We'll do it," Alex said with a nod, "Is Nala with him or..."

"We assume so..."

"Okay, we will be back with your son soon, don't worry."

"You can trust us," Piermont added.

"Take care, Commander and Dragon."

The pair nodded as they led their army outside the rock and towards the canyon, several miles to the east. Above, the sun began to descend.

By the time the Terminator Militia arrived at their destination, the southern hemisphere of the sun had already disappeared beneath the horizon to the west. As they effortlessly scaled the rock face, climbing into the large, open, beautiful niche, the sky became a beautiful pallet of color. Reds and purples mixed with the yellow base, and clouds looked like clouds of fire as they were heavily outlined against the clear sky.

While Alpha Company began to map out the camp, and where they were going to rest, Alex broke away from the crowd, leaning against a pillar to watch over the canyon. The niche was a large, open room, naturally-formed sandstone pillars were positioned at random intervals, several feet thick and supporting the naturally-formed caves. The wall facing the canyon was composed of a low-lying, three foot tall sandstone wall, with pillars jutting from the wall and to the ceiling. The distance from floor to ceiling was also large, over twenty feet tall.

The sinking sun bathed the ragged canyon in warm sunlight, casting a red-orange light upon it and the miles and miles of endless grassland beyond. In the warm breeze, the wind blew the distant grasses, and they swayed from side to side, giving the plain the appearance of a rolling sea of red, yellow, and green.

"It's beautiful!" Piermont said from behind Alex, and the Commander slowly nodded, entranced by the sheer natural beauty. "One of the most amazing things about being a part of the army," the dragon continued, "You get the opportunity to travel and see such wonderful sights."

"I agree completely, these are all things I would have never been able to see had I not formed this army, had I stayed with Plastro and the Tans."

Piermont laughed, "If you were still with the Tans, you would have been long-dead by now."

Alex shrugged, "Perhaps so, then again, perhaps not. I don't know, and I don't care to know."

"I'm happy the way things are...I mean...the missions are terrible, but..." and here Piermont nodded towards the ragged trench before them, "This...all of this...this sheer, untamed beauty...it makes it all worth it."

"I agree."

"Let's just hope we can find Simba soon."

"I'm worried about him, I'm sure he could take care of himself but..."

"But what, Alex?"

"He was the first one...the one who really started this army. Without him, this army would still be nothing but an outrageous idea in the heart and imagination of a young boy. I guess because of this, I feel a certain bond with him, one I can't even share with you."

"Despite our physical age, we aren't young."

"I know...the experiences we've witnessed since our formation..." Alex shook his head, "We've seen more than most have seen in their entire lives."

"And most have ever dreamed or wanted to see..." Piermont finished.

Alex nodded, "Exactly."

Dusk fell quickly upon the desert, and with it, the temperature. Despite the frigid nighttime temperatures, the cave itself was very warm, thanks to the roaring fire the army had built, and the almost magical abilities the Commander and his team held, using the ability to keep the heat inside the cave. As the temperature fell, the Commander and his army retired, realizing that they would have to awaken early the next morning to begin their search for the missing lion cub.

The day was surprisingly warm when Alex and the rest of Alpha Company awoke. Despite being late December, the African desert heat was overwhelming, and Alex had to take off his standard officer's uniform in favor of a plain white undershirt and a pair of khaki shorts. Despite the intense heat, it was sunny, and the Commander and his troops decided to camp out on the ledge. Deciding that the day was too hot to wander into the desert in search of the missing cubs, Crash revealed a pack of poker cards, and resting on the ledge, asked if anyone wanted to play Go Fish.

As the day peaked, and the troops began another game, Alex reached into a cooler by his side, revealed a can of Mountain Dew, and quickly tossed cans to each of his teammates.

"Jesus..." Crash said, shaking his head in disbelief, "It's hot as hell out here."

"Amen," Alex agreed.

"Too freaking hot," Piermont grumbled, irritated.

"Meh, you'll get used to it eventually," Cheet said with a sigh, "It just takes a lifetime of being raised in these damned temperatures."

"I can agree to that," Kovu nodded, "Hell, I was born and raised in this heat, and I STILL am not used to it."

"Same here," Kiara replied nonchalantly, her tail swaying in the breeze as she laid down, hanging it over the ledge and into the air.

"Anyways," Crash interrupted, "Got any 3's?"

"Go fish..." Piermont replied.

They didn't feel the first tremors.

Once the tremors had intensified, Alex commented, "Is there an earthquake or something going on?"

Crash shrugged, "Dunno, but I feel them, too." the bandicoot placed his paw to the ground.

Suddenly, as loud as a gunshot, a shrill cry broke out, echoing throughout the empty canyon, "_HELP!_"

Alarmed, Alpha Company shot up, "What the hell?" Alex exclaimed standing and scrambling onto higher ground as he pulled out his binoculars and scanned the surrounding area.

"HELP!" the voice cried again.

"Is that..." Alex began, then, shaking his head, "It can't be..."

"Crap!" Piermont swore, "Alex! Look over there!"

The Commander did, and saw a single lion cub speeding down the center of the canyon.

"_SIMBA!_" Alex cried, "Simba! Over here!"

Not hearing him, the distant cub cried again, "_HELP! SOMEBODY, PLEASE HELP!_"

"What the fu-?" Piermont began but didn't finish as he saw a huge, black dust cloud approaching from behind the cub, "Oh crap!"

"_STAMPEDE_!" Alex cried, "Cheet! On me!"

As Simba ran below them, and the front of the stampede began, Alex and Cheet backed away from the ledge, giving a running jump as they leaped from the cliff and landed, rather hard, on the back of a panicking wildebeest. Cheet yelled as he overshot, nearly being trampled by the wildebeest behind Alex as he veered off too much to the left. With a swift, agile move, Alex grabbed the cub by the nape of the neck and pulled him onto the beast beside him, "You're no good to me dead!" Alex called over the roar of the terrified beasts.

"Thanks...I guess..." Cheet replied, then, looking back, he added, "What started this!?"

"I don't know!" Alex replied truthfully, "Something startled them, could have been anything or everything. We need to move up the line!"

"How?"

"Either take control of the damned animals, or do a little...wildebeest hopping."

"You are NOT serious are you?"

"I am."

"Have you lost your freaking mind?"

"Perhaps!" Alex then saw the quickly approaching natural ramp, and as their beast veered towards said ramp, "Oh _shit_! HOLD ON GODDAMMIT!"

"Wait what?"

"HOLD ON!" the beast launched off of the ramp, collapsing as it was trampled beneath its comrades. As Alex, now gliding through the air, forced his direction so as to land on another beast. Cheet, crying out, didn't try to change his direction, as the panic of the approaching feet of the wildebeests emptied him of all thought. In another swift movement, Alex grabbed Cheet's paw as the cub not hanged over the side of the beast, mere inches from the ground.

"_DON'T LET GO, ALEX! PLEASE, OH PLEASE, ALEX, DON'T LET GO!"_

"I won't, Cheet," he replied, and pulled the cub onto the back of the animal.

However, the temporary diversion of his attention from the road ahead was a huge mistake, and the beast ramped off of another natural ramp. Alex lost his grip on Cheet, and the when he reached to save the cub, he barely missed, grabbing instead a hand of open air. "_CHEET!_" he howled, trying to save the cub, even as he watched the young cheetah fall to the ground, landing beneath the feet of the beasts.

The impact didn't kill Cheet, instead, it knocked him unconscious, and as he laid unconscious on the ground, around him, the stampede continued.

"Cheet! _NO!_"

The wildebeest continued forward, and the distance between the Commander and his fallen friend, continued to grow. Alex was now stuck with a painful decision, try to turn back and save his friend, traveling against the traffic, or continue forward, and save Simba and try to end the stampede. It was a painful decision, but, realizing that the odds of Cheet surviving the torrent of charging beasts were slim, Alex decided to try to save the one who still had a chance. He rose to his feet, standing unsteadily on the back of the rampaging wildebeest, and leaped off, landing on another animal. He continued doing this in a series of jumps, advancing faster as he hopped from beast-to-beast towards the head of the stampede.

As he approached the end of the canyon, he heard a series of loud, rhythmic bangs...machine gun fire. Forgetting the task at hand, the terrified Commander glanced around, searching for the source of the unmistakable sound of gunfire. Up in the hills, Alex could make out several shadowed figures...snipers.

He saw the muzzle-flash of one the rifles, and a sharp, painful heat surged through his body as a bullet tore through and blew out his shoulder. Crying out in pain and surprise, Alex went down, pulling himself back onto the beast to save him from being trampled. He heard another series of gunshots, and a dark shadow fell across the canyon. Looking up, Alex's face displayed the horror and dread he felt as he saw a plane-obviously LKA-fly overhead, close to the ground, a plume of fire and smoke erupting from the tail. The plane, spitting sparks and miniature explosions, hit the face of the wall, and a massive explosion caused the earth to shake as dust and debris blinded the Commander and slammed into him. The impact of the crash and following explosion blew the beast off his feet, and the Commander and the wildebeest went flying to the left as they smacked into the wall of the canyon.

Sharp pain and a disgusting crack struck Alex, and he saw colorful spots as he collapsed, sliding down the wall to the hard, baked ground of the dry riverbed, and he was aware of the blood pooling around him as he completely lost consciousness, and succumbed to the black void, striking him like a full-speed train strikes a suicidal man out to walk the tracks to meet his doom.

The last conscious thought that he heard was that of the name of his fallen comrade, _Cheet..._

_Pain...horrible, intense pain._ Alex awoke, slowly, his heart beating painfully in his ears. He was tired, exhausted, he didn't want to move, and his limbs felt like dead weights. For several minutes, he laid on the hard, cool ground, his wounded body crying in pain and soreness. He felt sticky, whether with sweat or blood or both he didn't know. The back of his head and his limbs were numb, and his back...it had no feeling. Alarmed, he tried moving his limbs, and although he couldn't feel them, glancing down, he saw they moved.

_What happened...?_ he thought, lost, confused, terrified, _I...oh God...I don't remember!_

He had to move, he had to stay awake, but his body protested, he didn't want to. At the edges of his blurred vision, he could see darkness creeping in, and he suddenly felt terrified to surrender, fearing he would die if he fell asleep and succumbed to the suffocating...yet peaceful and welcoming...darkness. As much as it pained him, as much as his body tried to convince his mind to rest...to sleep, he rolled onto his side, crying out as instant pain flared from his lower back and up to his neck. Holding his searing head, he lowered himself to the ground again. He felt liquid beneath his head, and as he looked at his palm, he saw that blood dripped from it, splattering onto his undershirt. Despite the pain, he clawed his way to a boulder at the base of one of the canyon walls and pulled himself into a sitting position, cringing as a fresh wave of hot pain tormented his wrecked body.

Gently, oh so gently, he lowered his bloody head onto the boulder and squinted his eyes shut as dim light shined down into them, blinding him momentarily. _I'm gonna die here... _he thought unhappily, then managed a weak smile at the thought of joining Rapid and Cheet.

At the mention of the cheetah cub, Alex stiffened and struggled to stand. He had to at least find the corpse if Cheet didn't survive...to cremate it. As Terminators were born of fire, so should they die of fire. _Oh God! _his thoughts cried as he stood, _Oh God...it hurts...it hurts so much...God...oh God...stop the pain!_

He didn't know how he could have survived...but he didn't even remember what happened. The events of the past twenty-four hours was a black spot in his mind, and he feared short-term memory loss, or permanent brain damage. Senses returning, he was vaguely aware of a tickling sensation in the back of his head and down his spine, a sensation like hundreds of insects squirming around. The thought terrified him, and he emitted a brief cry of alarm as his reflexes tried to swipe away the imaginary insects. Once his intelligent thoughts returned, he remembered the crawling sensation as that of his mutated cells healing his injuries.

The amount of energy that he felt had been drained told him he had sustained immense damage in whatever had happened to him, enough to kill a normal man. He then wondered what had caused his distress, what had caused the pain, and he feared that it was sapping his life force, that his unmaintained and uncontrolled healing powers would kill him before he had finished healing. Relying on memories of his training to deal with this, he forcefully limited the wonderful feeling of healing to the point where it healed only one wound every five or so minutes. The areas of his body, devastated and tormented with pain, tried to overwhelm his thinking, to force him to return the soothing, full-power healing. He resisted the urge, instead deciding to take the slow and safe path.

However, controlling the intense pleasure he felt as he healed was the equivalent of a dehydrated man, lost in the desert for days without a drink, and being forced to only take small teaspoons of ice cold water to soothe his thirst. He wanted to drink all at once, but he couldn't, he had to control it, failure would result in death. He didn't want the inscription on his tombstone reading 'Here Lies Alex Vaughn, The Boy Who Healed Himself To Death'.

Against every ounce of his being, he limited how much and how fast he healed, and pressed on, staggering like a drunk through the heart of the endless canyon. A thick lair of golden brown dust sat, unmoving in the still air of the canyon, visibility was limited to only a few feet, and the world was eerily silent. The dust, unable to be blown away by the winds thanks to the hundred foot tall canyon walls, instead settled slowly at the base of the canyon. Sweat mingled with the dirt and dried blood on Alex's face, and his eyes burned as the combination dripped into his eyes.

All he felt was heat, the pain had reduced to hot, throbbing warmth and soreness, much more manageable. His vision still swam, however, and he was still extremely dizzy and sick to his stomach. Twice he vomited, both times spending what felt like hours standing up again to resume his weak stagger towards the site of Cheet's fall. The stampede had long since ended, the army of wildebeests were nowhere to be seen, it had ended while Alex had been unconscious, however, an occasional stray beast still dashed through the dust, frightening the Commander.

As Alex searched for his troops, or Cheet, he tossed the recent events over and over in his mind, trying to trigger his short-term memory to remember...to remember what happened...to remember how he got from the cave in the middle of the night to the heart of the dusty canyon at a time of day impossible to pinpoint thanks to the thick lair of dust.

_How long have I been out? _he thought, distressed. _How long was I gone? Are the others worried? Is Cheet okay? _as he searched for answers, all he received were more questions in return, and he abandoned it, concentrating on nothing as he trudged along, silently waiting for the horror to end. He half-expected to wake up in his sleeping bag in the cave, to see the new day and realize that all of this was a dream.

However, everything was real, all his senses coordinated, and he had learned to tell the difference between vivid dreams and reality by how much relation his senses held. After much difficult training, he had learn to identify with all of his senses, how to control them, and how to tell if a scene was a dream or reality. If he saw and heard a scene, but he felt no wind...nor chill...just a steady warmth...characteristic of being under covers, and if he smelled nothing, and tasted nothing, and his sense of touch was steady, everything going unfeeling, it was a dream.

This...it was no dream. He saw the dusty canyon, heard the eerie silence, and the wind whistling eerily as it blew into the canyon, he felt the occasional breeze touch him in this damp, bare canyon, he felt the trampled terrain, turned and plowed by the stampede, he smelled the unmistakeable smell of dirt and dust, and by his senses, he could tell that all he perceived was real.

"Cheet!" he called into the canyon, angered and embarrassed by how weak his cracked, hoarse voice sounded.

The name of his friend echoed across the empty wasteland...but there was no returning greeting, no 'Flash/Thunder' routine.

Cupping his mouth, he cried again, "_CHEET!_"

Still...no reply.

"Oh no..." he paused suddenly in his tracks, tears beginning to rise as he stared, mouth agape, at the distant, silhouetted form lying sprawled in the center of the canyon. Alex's drunken stagger became a casual jog as he tried to hurry to the cub's side. He was stunned, terrified, worried, and saddened. There was a vast amount of blood around, several piled corpses of trampled wildebeests. Cheet himself lain, eyes closed, in a puddle of blood, but judging by the way the canyon dipped towards the center, causing the ground to be almost like a long, narrow bowl., it was hard to tell if the pooled blood belonged to the cub, or if what where the blood of the dead wildebeests had drained into the bowl of the canyon. The pool was at least four feet long and two feet wide, at least six inches deep at its deepest point, slowly tapering off to less than inch, there was too much for a single cheetah cub's body, so obviously at least some of the blood belonged to the fallen beasts. Whether or not some of the mixed blood belonged to the cub was a different story entirely, and Alex hoped it wasn't.

As he knelt beside the fallen cub, Alex checked his pulse. Suddenly, soft footsteps approached, sounding as if they belonged to a quadrupedal animal. Acting on instinct, with alarming speed and agility, Alex revealed his pistol and took aim at the approaching figure, easing off the safety and cocking the weapon. The figure, a silhouette of a small, four-legged animal hidden by the dust cloud, suddenly cried out in stammering sentences, "P...p...please! D...don't shoot! It's me! Simba!"

After a few more heart-pounding moments, Alex lowered his weapon, switching on the safety and reholstering his weapon, "Jesus," he began, "Don't sneak up on me."

Simba emerged from the cloud, "Sorry..." he then ran and hugged the kneeling Commander, almost knocking him down as the cub covered his friend's face in welcome kisses, "Oh thank God it's you Alex! I missed you!"

"Whoa! Hey hey hey! Easy!"

"Sorry..." Simba leaped down, shyly glancing at Alex apologetically.

"I missed you, too," and Alex smiled.

Simba, a relieved grin spreading across his face, once more attacked the Commander lovingly, "You came back! Just like you promised!"

"Of course...I never break a promise."

"No you don't, what brings you here?"

"On assignment."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Your dad enlisted us to look for you."

"Really?" Simba seemed unable to believe this.

"Yeah, now c'mon, we've kept everyone waiting long enough."

"Who's that?" Simba asked, nodding towards the downed cheetah.

"A friend...a rookie," Alex replied.

"I have several new faces to meet...don't I?"

"Aye, and a stark few to grieve."

"Wait...what?"

Alex didn't hear him, he had picked up the cub and was carrying him back, heading towards their encampment.

Crash recognized the Commander first. The bandicoot, worried after he had lost radio contact with Alex and Cheet earlier that day, was excited when he saw the silhouetted form of a broken Alex Vaughn limping slowly across the center of the valley. He had immediately climbed down the rock face, running to meet and embracing the unsteady Commander. "Jesus, Alex! You're okay! Holy hell, we were so worried about you! Piermont was damn near suicidal!"

"Easy big boy," Alex said with a sigh, "I have had one _hell _of a day."

"Alex!"

The happiness and tears were thick and recognizable in the dragon's voice as he ran to embrace his returned rider.

"Jesus, Alex! What the hell happened! I was freaking worried about you!"

"Long story, I'll tell you later this evening. Right now, I could really use a bite to eat, a drink, and..." here he looked down at himself, "A shower."

After Alex had bathed with a pail of water and returned to the main living quarters, he was assaulted with questions and cheers of relief. Crash tried the best he could to hold back the excited Alpha Company, insisting that the Commander needed urgent medical attention and rest. While he tended to Alex's injuries, the Commander recounted all he could remember involving the day.

After he had told his story, Crash took the silence as an opportunity to inventory Alex's injuries. :Mkay," he began, "Alex, it's a miracle you survived that stampede, even as a mutant. The injuries you sustained are more than enough to kill a mutant, so I'm labeling your unbelievable ability to survive as a combination of the will to live and a God-given miracle."

"Cut the theological crap, Crash," Alex began, "There is a time and a place for that, and this is neither."

"I beg to differ, Commander."

"More matter and less art."

Stricken dumb by this comment, Crash immediately cut to the chase, "Crushed ribcage, collapsed lung, pierced heart, busted skull, both arms shattered to pieces, legs suffering from three compound fractures. A broken neck, as unbelievable as it sounds, and a broken nose and mandible...you are one lucky bastard for surviving despite the abuse."

"I've experienced worse."

"I highly doubt it..."

Alex then suddenly grabbed Crash's jaw and pulled, forcefully, the alarmed bandicoot to eye level, "You listen to me, Sergeant. I have experienced much worse...you think No-Tongue went easy on us back in Chicago?"

Crash suppressed a gasp, he had forgotten about Alex's, Cheet's, and Rapid's tortures while imprisoned in Chicago by the late General John 'No-Tongue' Roberts.

Not realizing that Crash had ignored him following his revelation, Alex continued, "...so you do not tell me that I haven't experienced much worse...I have."

"Sorry..."

"It doesn't matter," then, "How's Cheet?"

"None the worse for wear," Crash replied with a sigh, "Same crap as you, only slightly more severe. He'll live, it's just hard telling how long he'll be out before he comes to, and even then, I couldn't tell you when he'd be able to fight again."

"As long as he's okay."

"He will be...eventually...but until then, we'll just have to wait things out. One thing's definitely certain, he will be out of commission for quite some time, you both will. Even with your healing abilities, there is no way in hell I will permit you to fight or stress your body with the incredible amount of wounds you sustained."

Incredulous, Alex replied, "What? The hell do you mean I'll be 'out of commission'? I need to lead my army!"

"No, Commander, you don't need to lead your army. We have many good men in reserve, men more than capable as temporary replacements until you are fit to fight again."

"Who?"

"Elliot for one, Piermont for another..."

At the mention of his name, Piermont spoke up, "What now? What about me?"

"Nothing, Pierre," Crash replied, then, back to Alex, "Anyways, we have plenty of people suitable to replace you...temporarily..."

"You're frigging insane!"

"No, I'm being logical, you are _NOT_ fit to fight, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna let you do anything stressful until after you have fully recovered. That is my final decision, and nothing will change my mind."

"Let me continue my duties, Sergeant, that's an order."

"It is an order, then, that I am disobeying, I'm sticking to my beliefs," Crash stood and stretched, "Trust me, you'll thank me later. Goodnight Alex, I'll see you in the morning."


	5. Chapter V: The Battle of Pride Rock

_**Chapter V**_**:**

**-''The Battle of Pride Rock''-**

**-Serengeti, Africa-**

**-_30 December 2002_-**

**-_1802 Hours_-**

_Pain...intense...unimaginable pain. Alex awoke, slowly rising to consciousness seeing, through his blurry, black-and-white vision, the massacre that lay before him. Corpses...hundreds upon hundreds of corpses...all Terminators judging by the uniforms they wore. The corpses lay strewn about, and Alex faintly, distantly, remembered a dream, much similar to this one, that he had had what seemed like years ago._

_He felt intense pain, unimaginable, and his senses, specially tuned to identify nightmares from reality, where experiencing this as if it were real. The coppery odor of blood mingled with the smell of smoke and and burning rubber, creating a perfume he identified as the smell of war. His senses, hypersensitive thanks to the feverish infection that had settled as he had lain on the dusty, bloody ground of the canyon, could feel the pain, could feel the wet stone beneath him. Lost in feverish dreams, he could see the terrifying, post-apocalyptic scene before him, and he could also taste the perfume and hear the pops and crackles of fire, hear the distant staccato of gunfire, he could hear tiny explosions erupting as the decimated city before him settled so soon after a battle that he had apparently lost._

_As he saw through his semi-conscious vision, some color returned to the world, and he could see blood, lots of blood, the reds sharp and blinding against the dull, drab, grays and whites of the backdrop. The sky was overcast, and the ground, having seen rain recently, was muddy. The air was cool, not too hot, not too cold, and it was still, without wind, causing the stale, stagnant air to linger, and the odors to remain in place. As his senses slowly returned, one by precious one, he could see shadowy figures in the distance, wandering around the sea of bodies and executing any downed survivors. One of the enemy soldiers, clad in a dark blue uniform that Alex could not recognize, stepped into the busted, broken, drained fountain, and opened fire into the sea of bodies with a modified AK47, killing two wounded soldiers to Alex's left and right._

_Instinctively, Alex held his breath and squeezed his eyes shut so that he could only see a sliver of the world before him. Playing dead, he watched as the stranger wander around the fountain, killing off any survivors. A man to Alex's left groaned in pain, and the guard, alerted, wandered over to the fallen soldier, placing the barrel of the weapon hard up against the head of the soldier, and firing a single shot. Blood and gray matter splattered onto the Commander's face, and he struggled to remain still, to control his breathing, to play dead._

_The enemy paused in the center of the fountain, glancing around at the carnage for several moments before walking away, leaving the fountain and disappearing in the sea of corpses. For several minutes, Alex remained in place, unmoving, when he finally gathered up the strength and courage to move, he began crawling his way through the corpses, slowly pushing his way across the heart of the fountain, intent on finding someone he didn't recognize. A name came to his lips, and, unable to control himself, he began to call, "Spyro..." he said, "Spyro...where are you?"_

_He stifled a cry as he jostled his wounded legs and continued crawling across the floor, trying to remain awake as he saw rings of darkness lining his outer vision, the first signs of arriving unconsciousness. "Spyro...where...are...you..."_

_Finally, he couldn't move, and as the world before him lost detail, he collapsed, rolling onto his back and staring into the sky as the rings grew closer until his vision completely darkened..._

_Spyro!_ Alex's thoughts cried as his eyes shot open. He laid on his back, blinded as the noonday desert sun shined down into his eyes. Crawling silently across the cave, past his sleeping troops, he advanced towards the mouth of the cavern, pulling himself into a sitting position and leaning against the outer wall on the ledge. Now sitting against the wall, he closed his eyes and swallowed, breathing heavily as he waited for the red and orange spots in his eyes to disappear. When they did, he slowly opened, trembling with feverish chills despite the easy 115° Fahrenheit temperatures.

"Spyro..." he muttered, repeating the strange name over and over again, "Spyro...Spyro...Spyro?"

He opened his eyes as he ended his chant with a question. Who was Spyro and why was he intruding upon the Commander's dreams? Wracked by fever and nausea, he struggled to stand, failing several times.

After fifteen minutes of attempting to stand, he finally succeeded, and standing up, using his formerly-decorative-now-useful cane for support, the others of Alpha Company began to awaken. "Commander?" Kovu said, walking outside, "Perhaps we should set out for Pride Rock?"

"That might be best," Alex replied, he limped to the ledge and peered down.

"Need help?" Kovu asked, mock amusement in his voice and a smirk on his face.

"No, I got it..."

For several minutes, Alex stared down over the edge, unmoving, then, with a sigh, he said, "Ah hell."

"What?" Kovu was nearly unable to suppress a laugh.

"Perhaps I...um...might need a bit of help..."

Kovu burst out laughing, and Alex said, "hut your goddamn mouth before I slit your throat."

For some reason, this only made the cub laugh harder, and Alex, distressed, then added, "I'm freaking serious."

"It's hard to take you seriously, Commander, not in this state."

"Piss off!"

Unable to stop laughing, Kovu said, "Mkay, lemme go get Piermont and we'll set out."

The road itself was a long trip...so long that no one could keep an accurate time. The injuries Alex had sustained kept him from being able to fly Piermont, and after a long and painful walk, they were able to flag down a caravan of roaming traders. After a decent amount of payment, the Terminators rested in the luggage compartment of a covered, overheated, wagon. Even the weak light shining through translucent hide tarpaulin was enough to bring the Commander to his knees, though he refused to acknowledge the spike of pain as it tore through his body of the intense light. He was broken, beat, bruised badly, there would be an enormous amount of healing time involved, and, for the first time in his life, he was unsure of whether or not to continue the mission.

There was plenty of time to back out now, they were still an hour out of where Pride Rock stood, but Alex felt conflicting emotions concerning which actions to take, and which to ignore. His broken body screamed for relief, to return and rest in a warm bed back at home, but his pride and dignity, as well as his inner soldier, strove to continue the mission despite everything, to finish what was started. Alex didn't know what to think, he was at a loss, and his friends were of little help, even if he did consult them, they could do little to help him. These wounds were of his own choosing, he should have gone back to Cheet, to save the cub, and he felt that this was punishment for his decision...

Unless...

What if this was punishment for his continued accusations against the cub for Rapid's death? He rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands, ignoring the roaring pain from his muscles and bones, he could never recall being so confused in his life. As his fellow soldiers slept around him in the wagon, somehow managing to best the heat, Alex lowered his head and prayed for an answer. He hated not having a decision, because not having a decision meant not having a destination, and not having a destination made him feel lost, vulnerable, helpless...and severely damaged his pride.

After several minutes, he came to his decision, he would press on, no matter what, he would finish the mission. However, he did still pray that he would not need any more hard physical labor for awhile. Finally, as the warmth sank into his bones, easing the pain, and he began to relax, he drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.

When Alex finally awoke, the sun had long since sank, and the light of a full moon shined down on his face through the thick hide covering the wagon. The intense cold of desert night had replaced the heat of desert day, and Alex found himself stiff from the position he had slept in. Slowly, clumsily, he lowered himself out of the wagon and, using his cane for support, limped off towards a copse of trees to relieve himself.

Upon his return to camp, he paused to glance around at the small camp before him. His team laid around, using their beat camouflage sleeping bags for warmth. For several minutes, he watched the sleeping camp as he eyed each individual of Alpha Company, then, in a stiff limp, he wandered over to his dragon, a hulking mass across camp. Gently, tenderly, he stroked the beast's muzzle, and as Piermont opened one sleepy, stunning emerald eye, hes wordlessly lifted a wing, closing the eye in the process.

In several more clumsy steps, he accepted Piermont's offer and curled into a ball beneath the dragon's wing. Once settled, he lowered his wing, pressing it against the Commander's body almost like a blanket. Comforted by the warmth of his dragon's flank, Alex drifted off once more into a deep sleep, this time, one haunted by dreams of the stampede.

"Alex! Alex wake up! We're here!"

The Commander slowly opened his eyes to see the shining, golden eyes of an excited Simba standing over him. "Why the rush?" he asked the cub sleepily, yawning, "You're worse than a goddamn kid on Christmas."

"C'mon! Let's go!"

"Fine, fine...I'm coming."

Despite knowing that they were safe, the intimidation factor of being at Pride Rock still lingered, and they were all still uncomfortable being this close to the symbolic capital of the lion populace. "Still ain't likin' this," Piermont muttered, "Mufasa and his damn honor guard are freakin' intimidating as hell."

"Amen," Prancy replied, "Sadly, there's nothing we can do but to press on."

"Think of it this way, Pierre," Alex added, "The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can go home."

Piermont nodded, submitting, "True, you have a point there."

"I'd hope so," then, to Crash, "Sergeant, status on Cheet?"

"Well..." the bandicoot began, "He's _beginning _to show signs of awakening, Commander. We can only hope he does soon."

"Also, how in the hell will we get home? If I can't fly Piermont...we can't teleport."

"I've been trying to figure out that one myself. If worse comes to worse, we'll bunk with the lions for awhile."

"Oh, _hell _no! There is no freaking way in hell I'm staying with these bastards any longer than I have to!" Piermont exclaimed, stunned.

"We may not have a choice, Pierre," Crash sighed, "Not if we intend to keep Alex and Cheet alive and healthy."

"Son of a bitch..." Piermont muttered, eagerly rubbing his temples, "So we stay..."

"They will protect us," Alex interrupted, "I know they will."

"How? Have you forgotten, Commander, how they tried to kill us not too long ago?"

"But they promised our rocky past would be forgotten if we returned Simba safely."

"Bull, I'll believe it when I see it. Don't tell me you actually _trust _them?"

Alex nodded, "I do."

"Have...you...lost...your...freaking..._MIND_!? How can you trust them after all they've done to us?"

"There's no sense in lingering on this subject any longer, Pierre. I'm done talking about this."

"Oh, hell no, Alex. We're gonna talk about this."

"Later."

Piermont, mouth agape, watched as Alex stepped onto the rock. Then, running to catch up, shouted, "Have you forgotten they would forgive if we returned _both _Simba _and_ Nala? I'm sorry, but unless she is invisible, I'm gonna say we haven't found her."

"Nala's fine," Simba interrupted, "She went back home a few days ago."

"Why?" Alex asked, pausing as he turned his full attention to the cub.

"She said that she was tired and homesick."

"Aww..." Alex crooned, "Poor thing."

"Lemme tell you though, Alex..."

"Yeah?"

"She will be ecstatic when she sees you guys, she loved you all...hell..._I_ love you all."

"Bleh!" Piermont made a show of gagging.

Simba, eyes narrowed, turned to face the dragon, "Screw you, Greenie."

Piermont uttered a low growl, a toned down challenge.

"I'm not gonna fight you, I don't care to, now stop being a whiny-ass and let's go already."

The Terminators entered the cave, bracing themselves in the event they were challenged. Around them, they could make out the forms of sleeping lions as they awoke and stared at them. In the largest chamber of the cave system, Alex cupped his mouth and boomed, "_Mufasa!_" listening as his voice resounded and echoed off of the natural arch design of the cave walls and ceiling.

Almost immediately, the ground shook as the king of lions stepped onto his usual perch at the head of the cave. In the dim light shining into the inner sanctum via a hole in the ceiling, Alex could make out an expression of relief on the lion's face. "You found them?"

Kneeling in respect, Alex replied, "Aye, one of them."

"Simba!" came a shrill, female cry of relief from the darkness. As Alex returned to his standing position, easing the white-knuckled grip he had unknowingly put on the handle of his blade, he looked over to see Nala emerge from the darkness and pounce Simba, covering the little lion in kisses of happiness.

Simba himself seemed embarrassed by the act of affection, but was also thoroughly pleased as Alex could tell.

"I'm impressed, Commander," the King said, easing his sarcastic emphasis on Alex's title, "You have proven yourself useful."

"I seek not to make enemies, m'lord."

"Perhaps now I can see you as familiars instead of infidels?"

"Much thanks, Your Highness."

"Good."

The Commander turned to leave when Mufasa abruptly stopped him.

"However, you seem to have been unable to escape this mission unscathed?"

"Aye..." Alex replied, embarrassed, "I...got into a little situation."

"Lions informed me of the stampede in Devil's Canyon, I assume you were there?"

"Aye, that is where we found Simba."

"Thank you, Commander," Mufasa sent an angry glance at Simba, and Alex knew that the poor cub was in for a talk once everyone left, "I will discuss this matter, privately, with my son later. As for you and your kin, you are welcome to stay until you feel ready to leave."

"Thank you."

"There should be a vacancy for you and your troops to camp further back in the cavern, I'll alert my guards to your presence, and ensure that you remain unharmed and unchallenged until you are fully recuperated. If not, talk to me and you can bunk in my chambers."

"Thank you."

"You are most welcome, I'll leave you to your own devices now."

"Dude," Piermont said to Alex once they were settled in the cavern Mufasa had mentioned, "What the hell was all that?"

"All what?" Alex asked.

"All that 'my lord' and 'your highness' bullcrap."

"It's called respect, Pierre."

"It's cheesy as hell."

"I'm trying not to put Mufasa on my bad side. Although the respectful titles and other royal nonsense sounds like lines from a cheesy medieval 'B' movie, it puts him on my good side."

"How?"

"Common courtesy, it's all a sign of respect."

Piermont scoffed, "Yeah, well, whatever."

"I know that's something you can't grasp, Pierre...'respect'...but believe it or not, it is actually smiled upon in civilized or semi-civilized societies."

Piermont smirked, "But this is neither, it's a society of animals."

Noting the dragon's play on words, Alex shook his head and sighed. "What a crappy pun."

"D'awww, you hurt my feelings."

"Oh b'awww, cry me a river."

"I just might."

"Good for you."

Suddenly, the world shook as a resounding boom blasted throughout the cave. The shock wave, amplified by the confined structure, struck the Terminators, hitting them head on and knocking them down.

"Holy _hell!_" Piermont cried, "What the hell was that?"

Alarmed, and gasping for breath, Alex said, "I don't know. C'mon! Follow me!"

They ran to the ledge outside the caves on Pride Rock, and were surrounded by alarmed lions as they stared, eyes and mouths agape, at a dozen fiery balls of light moving in parallel lines across the dark skies, arching as they came down and slammed into the rock. "What the hell is going on?" Crash cried, stumbling out.

"Son of a _bitch_!" Piermont cried, "We're under attack!"

"Oi!" Alex called to the mass, "Get inside! Now goddammit!"

As the spectators broke up and fled into the gaping mouth of the cave, Piermont sent a worried glance to Alex.

"Dammit..." Alex sighed, "Who in the hell is attacking us?"

"I don't know, but we need to get over there to figure out who they are."

Despite the angry protests of Alpha Company, Alex scampered onto Piermont's back, and the two took off towards the trail of smoke marking where the fireballs had came from. As the dragon flew above the barren expanse, he lowered and Alex saw the first line of attackers. Hundreds of tanks and foot soldiers, all marching towards the rock.

_We need to repel them! _Alec mentally commander his dragon.

_If they arrive at Pride Rock, the lions are screwed, we can't defend them! We'll be overwhelmed and slaughtered!_ Piermont replied.

As the front lines of the invasion party began turning their fire to the circling dragon, the pair turned away, speeding back to rock to inform the rest of their army of the invasion. As they drew close to the structure, Piermont let loose a deafening roar of alarm. The residents of Pride Rock and Alpha Company rushed out as they awaited the report. Mufasa emerged from the darkness of the cave, roaring commands to clear a landing zone for the dragon and his rider. As the pair landed, the king of lion asked, "What in the hell is going on?"

"We're under attack!" Alex exclaimed in between gasps.

"How many?"

"Hundreds if not thousands, mostly tanks and infantry."

"We don't stand a chance! We have no artillery or weapons of war here to repel them!"

"Oi!" Alex called, addressing Crash, who came stumbling over, "Call Elliot, tell him Pride Rock is under attack by armor and infantry. We need reinforcements, weapons, and artillery out here ASAP if we hope to repel them."

"Yes, sir."

"Good, now go! Get outta here!"

Turning his attention back to the gathered forces, Alex called, "Oi! Get down there! We need to delay their arrival as much as possible!"

Without another word, Piermont shot into the air, heading back to the invasion force. As the front lines came into view, Piermont opened his muzzle and spewed white fire down onto the forces. Consequently, Alex adjusted his mount as the dragon's scales began to heat up. Piermont continued spewing the stream of fire, tearing the force in half vertically. As he reached the invaders' rear, he shot into the air, using a corkscrew maneuver to turn around and spew fire on the center of one of the halves. In another corkscrew, he turned around, spewing fire onto center of the other half, thus dividing the party into fourths.\

"_URA!_" Piermont cried as he began another stream of fire.

Below, the lions were arriving and beginning to tear at the front lines, mauling the soldiers as they began to cut into the invaders. Another artillery barrage fired, slamming into the now-distant structure of Pride Rock. Every impact of a shell caused the earth to rumble and quake beneath the warring armies.

_Piermont!_ Alex thought at his dragon, _Get me to the rear and drop me off at the artillery! We need to neutralize their artillery!_

_Commander! Are you freaking insane? You won't stand a chance! You can hardly stand let alone fight!_ Piermont protested.

_Goddammit Piermont! I can fight well enough!_

_No!_

_LAND! That's an order Goddammit!_

Seeing as he had no other choice, Piermont lowered, infusing some of his strength with the Commander to improve his damaged stamina and agility. Alex, without a word, stood on his dragon's back and prepared to jump. Hysteria filled him as he saw the ground a hundred feet below, in perfect health, he could make it, but his injured body coupled with his new-found mortality terrified him and froze him in place.

As he closed his eyes to prepare to jump, the artillery fired again, and Piermont roared in pain and spiraled out of control as an artillery shell struck his wing. Alex was thrown off, and, terrified of the unexpected motivation, forgot to brace himself, and he landed, painfully, on the ground. His vision instantly blurred, colored spots danced across his eyes, his hearing silenced, and everything moved in slow motion as he lay, stunned, in the grass, struggling to catch his lost breath.

As his vision cleared, he saw Piermont, fire spewing from his wing, spiral down somewhere in the plains. The distance was impossible to judge, thanks to the barren plain, and Alex didn't know where he landed, or if he was alright. Another shell rocked a nearby Acacia tree, and Alex watched, letting out a silent, breathless scream as the tree, in a sea of fire and splinters came down over him.

"_Commander? Commander! Wake up, Commander! COMMANDER! WAKE _UP!"

Alex opened his eyes, only to be staring at a tree, just barely holding onto the trunk by a splinter, tipping dangerously towards the Commander. "Wh...what?"

"Commander! Carefully move away!" the Commander glanced around to spot Mufasa standing beside him. The lion was blood-soaked, his muzzle and paws were red with blood, and he approached Alex tentatively, casting occasional, worried glances at the tree.

In a gust of wind, there came the sound of snapping wood, each snap making Alex wince, and he watched, terrified, as the tree came closer and closer, it groaned in protest, and each small gust found like a tornado to the Commander's adrenaline-heightened senses. However, after the brief gust, the tree still stood, and Alex took this as an opportunity to scramble out of the way. Suddenly, another gust rocked the plains, and the tree, after allowing its prisoner free, finally gave up the ghost and came tumbling down.

Around Alex, still panting from terror, the battle had calmed in between waves.

"The soldiers have gone to regroup and resupply," Mufasa said with a sigh, "Yet, they have encircled our perimeter in a ring of steel and flesh, to trap us in here. We need a plan, Commander, or we will not stand a chance."

"Where's Piermont?"

"We do not know where your dragon has fallen. We saw him shot out of the sky and land in the plains, but we haven't found him."

Alex looked down in fear, frightened that his dragon was dead. "I hope he's okay..."

"He will be I'm sure, for now, how do we repel them?"

"There's too many...and we're outmanned, by the time reinforcements arrive, we might already have fallen."

"What do we do?"

"We need to take as many down as we can, and hope that we repel them...unless..."

"Unless what?"

"We scared the living crap out of them."

"How?"

"If they're LKA, albeit under new management, they are highly superstitious."

"So what do we do?"

The Commander smiled maliciously, "Easy, but I need privacy."

"Done."

"Good, I'll head back to Pride Rock, let me know when they return."

"Aye."

Alex entered the gaping caves of Pride Rock, now eerily empty as it's occupants awaited the return of their invaders. Alex walked into a small, isolated corner of the rock and sat down as if about to meditate. As he adopted the meditating pose, he worked on retreating into his mind, in hopes of calling forth Rapid's spirit, perhaps the late commander could help them somehow.

As Alex retreated into the depths of his cavernous, labyrinthine mind, he wandered the familiar depths, following a route he remembered clearly, towards the sector of their mental bank formerly occupied by Rapid. Upon arriving at the closed and sealed door, the physical embodiment of the skunk's departure. Alex walked up and knelt by the locked door, bowing as if at an alter. Mumbling words he didn't quite understand, he recited as he heard the sound of air filling a vacuum, a blinding light stabbed through the Commander's squinted eyes, and the blinding golden light flooded the caverns of the long-abandoned mental route.

Alex attempted to look into the light, but was forced to look away as the light threatened to incinerate his retinas. "_COMMANDER!_" boomed the haunted, pained voice of Rapid, amplified to deafening intensity, "_WHY HAVE YOU COME?_"

_I need to talk to you, Rapid,_ Alex thought, _Urgently._

Suddenly, in a brilliant flash of white light, the golden glow cut off as the door sealed shut with a resounding boom. As Alex looked up to stare into the scarred, burned, shredded, corpse-like face of the skunk, Rapid spoke in that eerie, haunted, pained voice, "What is it you need, Alex?"

"LKA, I think, are attacking us, we need help. Reinforcements are too far out to help, and we're outnumbered, out-manned, and out-gunned."

"How can I help? I'm not in the physical world anymore."

"Can't you come forward?"

"It's not that easy, Alex."

"Then what do we do?"

Rapid remained silent for a moment, before he looked up and said, "Alex...there is...something...I've been wanting to show for a long time; something I caught onto a long time ago, but forgot to mention. You understand how...I had...powers of a more...psychic nature?"

"Yeah...I remember briefly."

"There is something I caught in you...a terrifying presence, one born as from Hell itself."

"What?"

"I don't know when it arrived into its cell...your body...or how, all I know is that it's there, lying dormant."

"What can I do about this 'inner presence'?"

"Awaken it, activate it."

"How?"

"I can help you activate, but how to control it, how to use it, it's up to you. You must take great care to maintain control, leave it out for too long, it can consume your soul and gain permanent control over your cell, locking you away for eternity within the unseen and unexplored depths of your mind, a never-ending labyrinth that will drive you into insanity in the tortures and horrific monsters it hides within its shadowy depths."

"What?"

"Close your eyes, Commander."

Alex did as he was told, fear starting to spike at this unusual occurrence.

"Now, I must find it, wait here."

Alex suddenly felt disgusted and repulsed as he felt the corpse-like touch of Rapid's damned spirit enter his mind. Rapid shielded his mind, disabling Alex's ability to search the skunk's memories, but the skunk didn't have to worry about Alex prying, he didn't even want to. The fears of what Rapid was experiencing pressed deeply into his heart. On a few instances, Rapid's memories accidentally brushed Alex's and the Commander cringed at the hellish screams of torment and overwhelming sensory overload of misery, pain, suffering, and death, brief milliseconds of what Rapid experiences every day, all day for the rest of eternity.

Suddenly, Alex felt something turn within his mind, he felt a large, dark presence seem to awaken, and he felt Rapid withdrawing his mind from his former leader and friend's. Unable to speak as the presence overwhelmed every sense, Alex screamed in thoughts, _WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?_

I saved you, Alex, farewell.

In an instant, he heard Rapid's distant goodbyes, and he awoke on the ground of one of Pride Rock's caves, locked in a seizure as his entire body jerked abruptly.

_NO!_ the Commander's thoughts cried, _Don't take me! I will not go!_

A deep, demonic voice, adopting an eerily soothing and relaxing tone, spoke directly to Alex from within his mind, _Hush now, little one. I shall not harm you, I am here to help you._

_Who are you?_

The aura of the dark, mental being adopted a lighter feel, and Alex imagined an eye-less shadow-figure smiling, revealing razor-sharp fangs, _I...I am a monument to all your sins._ It let out a strange, echoey laugh that reverberated within the Commander's mind at its joke and reference. _Allow me to come forth, and all your worries will be relieved._

Hesitantly, Alex loosened his mental pin on the dark presence. As the being came forth, Alex winced as the presence in its entirety emerged from the pit, it was much larger than Alex had originally imagined, and he was terrified to realize the beast towered over him, dominating his entire form, leaving only a germ-sized fragment to which Alex's conscience was compressed within. As it took over, Alex mentally grabbed some part of the being, imagining himself in a dark cave and grabbing the tail of a dragon as it emerged from the cave and into the light of day. He held his grip, and the presence, its aura now adopting a sense of annoyance, allowed the grasp, _Hold on if you want, little one. Perhaps you can compress me in that pit once more? Perhaps not. _Here it laughed again.

In the real world, Alex's back arched as he let out a gurgled scream, he heard the sound of ripping flesh, felt as his skin melted from his bones, giving way to the being. He felt the flesh, muscle, and bone of his back split open, and felt as a massive, bony mass tore through it, emerging to reveal slick, wet, torn wings, newly grown from the Commander's back.

His last conscious experience before he allowed the beast to take full control, was looking upon the world through a haze of red, and glowing colors, as if looking through eyes now made of thermal cameras.

"My name is _Necrondousk_, and I have returned from my eternal slumber! It has been a long time since I last felt the world..." the shadow-demon _Necrondousk_ spoke in his layered voice, "So many hundreds of years..."

_Who are you?_ the weak mental voice of Alex asked.

"I am the highest of archdemons, the Shadow-Demon, _Necrondousk_, but alas, you can call me Necrodusk."

_How can you help me?_

"Allow me to...prove my abilities in the heat of battle."

"Commander!" a voice rang out through the caves. Prancy emerged from the darkness of the main corridor, only to jump back in alarm at the sight of the demon, "What...Commander! Who are you?"

"My name is Necrodusk, and I have come to aid you."

"What in the hell are you?"

"The highest of demonic lords, the archdemon of archdemons, second-in-command to Lord Lucifer himself, I am a Shadow-Demon."

"Who are you, and what did you do with Alex?"

"Do not worry, Caribou, he is fine, now, come hither, allow me to show you the first of my powers!" Necrodusk let loose a terrifying cackle that reverberated throughout the halls. The demon was over seven feet tall, with smoky, shadowy skin as black as pitch. Purple veins were visible, webbing throughout his skin. His massive wings, holding a six foot wingspan at full spread, were a dingy gray with veins of red running through them. His eyes were hemispheres, positioned at 45° angles with the arches pointing down. His evil eyes were as red as blood, and seemed to have purple smoke running off of them. His mouth, was opened in a twisted smile, revealing hundreds of razor-sharp fangs, all positioned throughout his mouth, almost as if it were a drill. His garb consisted of a red tunic, spider-webbed with gray and black. His hands consisted of bony with small, mountainous wedges of bone protruding from the joints between the phalanges and metacarpals. Despite his shadowy appearance, his form was muscular, with ropes of muscles and sinews shining from beneath his shadowy skin. His boots were made of ancient, dented steel, and he had a battered, steel, Gladiator-style helmet on his head. The horns poking from his head were long and curved, like a devil's, and were coal-black with veins of what appeared to be magma spider-webbing throughout.

Upon closer examination of his tunic, Prancy spotted a shield centered on the breastplate, inside the shield was what appeared to be a dragon's skull, with eyes glowing with a pulsating red light, what Prancy assumed to be the beast's heart shining through the translucent skin beneath the tunic/breasplate. On a tattered, leather belt, Prancy noted the golden sheath, encrusted with sapphire, emerald, and ruby, and he saw the hilt and part of the shaft of the sword within. The hilt was made of bone, wrapped in black leather, with a large, red orb, a massive ruby, centered on the end facing out. A pearl, set within a circle of gold, was centered and seemingly engraved into the handle, and Prancy also noted that the other side also held a gold-circled pearl. The shaft of the blade appeared to be made of solid gold, engraved with beautiful, webbed patterns overlaid with strange runes, four large runes that Prancy recognized as symbols for the four main elements: earth, wind, fire, and water, and inset with jewels.

The beast held a golden staff, eight feet tall, and engraved with the same pattern as the sword. There were no runes, but it was encrusted with jewels found in the rest of his armor and weaponry: emerald, sapphire, and ruby, all cut to diamond-like shapes. The end of the staff, facing towards the sky, held a massive, spherical ruby, in which another strange rune was engraved and visible as a maroon shape against the blood red. The ruby was held in place by four claw-like shapes sculpted into the staff. Strapped around the beast's back by an ancient leather strap, was an obsidian shield with the dragon-skull pattern on the beast's breast carved within.

"Come here little one," the demon told the reindeer in that eerily soothing voice. Unable to control his body, Prancy did, and as much as he tried to stop, he had lost control of his limbs, as if they had a mind of their own, one attracted to that voice. Now in front of the beast, Prancy noted the distinct black aura surrounding Necrodusk, and the stench of death, decay, and burning flesh that perfumed him. Necrodusk stroked Prancy's side, and the reindeer let out a cry of disgust and terror as the flesh the demon had touched, was now as black as coal, and he watched, in horror, as black tentacle-shaped colors spread from that dark spot on his fur. Little by little, the tentacles of black crawled over him slowly, taking over his body as he transformed into something he did not know.

Suddenly, he let out a cry of pain and collapsed as a flash of blinding white light shot from his body and filled the room, seeping out of every pore in Pride Rock as it shined into the night. When the light receded, Prancy was on longer his usual self. Now, he was a stallion, massive, over eight feet tall and ten feet long, as black as night, with blood-red 45° triangles as eyes. His antlers had disappeared, now revealing a pitch-black mane that ran down the center of his back and to his horse's tail. His underside was a dark gray, and his nostrils, now like a bulls, glowed red from within. As he opened his mouth and let loose a terrifying, demonic whinny, his mouth glowed like fire, and his tongue looked like magma. Every exhale sent plumes of white smoke shooting from his flaring nostrils, as the shadowy fire ensconcing him flared and moved and swayed like fire. His black flesh seemed thin and stretched across his massive, roped muscles. Vanishing in a flash of black smoke, Necrodusk reappeared atop his mount, and speaking in a deep, terrifying language that stabbed the mind as well as the ears in its droning sound, Necrodusk commanded to his beast, "_Shafaer nuade ekess vargach! Svent wer irlym! Krikvlic astahi bouv de bouv vur svadri wer yobolat vur kssrech de asta drihliri. ihk hesi latali, ihk vivex, ihk wer whedab daar!_"

With a whinny, Necrodusk's demonic mount roared back, "_Marfedelom ekess wer irlym! Origato wer ithquenti loaw show kilith shafaer astahi! origato astahi valignat persvek uoinota vur zahhar ihk asta sins!_"

In another pair of demonic roars, the demonic pair sped out of the caves and towards the battle as the next wave of enemies approached.

"_Symba ini symba yth march lae ir! Wer edar nishka wielg sjek yth lleisgar ulnaus. Zyak forth, nishka shio di tobor,_" the eerie voice of Necrodusk rang out through the dark, still night.

"_Lae ir yth geou lleisgar de wer bowels di Uoinota, ekess thesek lae hesi irlymi wielg ini hesi cha'sid, lae asta fothisevi wielg ekess hesi cayosin, vur wer vilklviri krikvlic sva asta yobolat ihk shio tiselaiw,_" the demon's stallion spoke.

"_Vinult Malaskus! Vinult wer irral Maxia! Vinult wer wielgtor torkei, nomenes svaust jahen rechan vur sent ekess vessa wer souls di wer vregnth. Dronilnr astahi ekess asta knees, claim asta fothisevi, vur sone asta souls lae yth vulsh asta iejir vur gribkoan acht asta yobolat!_"

"_Ekess vargach torkei di marfedelom! Ekess aryte mrith wer irlymi di hesi xiekivi! Show thric kilith! Show thric onelkatorra! Drain wer iejir de asta vutha riveki! Slathalin! Slathalin! Svent! Svent! Svent astahi lae astahii vdri! Kraskdao asta sthyri! Sacrifice asta vraktor! Rape asta aesthyri! Vessa asta possessions! Ura!_"

"URA!" With another hellish battle cry, the demonic horseman charged down Pride Rock, speeding towards the advancing army as he drew his blood-stained sword. "_Svent! Svent!_" the demonic rider shouted in a powerful voice, "_Shio vaex ekess wer shasva vers di _Necrondousk!"

As his mount unleashed another hellish whinny, the horse-and-rider, pursued by a crawling shadow, sped towards the battle at impossible speeds. As they approached, the world quaked at their feet, and bright fire burned around them, each step of the horse's hooves sending a tongue of flame arcing away from them.

Immediately, the invading LKA froze, and as they turned to witness the quickly approaching spawn of hell, they began to step back. Still, they backed once as they witnessed the arriving beast, but fear rooted them in place, and men began to cry in shrill pain as the flesh, blood, and muscle seemed to melt off their skeletons. Several men shrieked in pain as their skin bubbled, as if boiling, and they exploded into a column of red soup, all organs, flesh, and bone liquefied by the sheer power of the beast cry. Still he approached, and he breathed three powerful words into the chilly morning, words that sent more men to their liquefied ends. "_Komos! Sereventos! Arramos!_"

"And behold a black horse..." Crash mouthed in wonder.

"I thought the horse of death was pale? I mean, White was Conquest, Red was War, Black was Famine, and Gray was Death?" Simba asked.

"Pale...or ashen."

"What is it?"

"I...dunno..."

"What is happening to those soldiers?"

"Damned if I know."

Fighting his way to the pair, Knuckles asked, "What the hell is going on?"

"I don't know, but we need to get out of here, that beast...look what it's doing to the LKA!"

"Where is Alex? We can't leave without him!"

"We can't leave without Piermont either..."

"_MOVE!_" Simba cried, diving out of the way as the black or dark gray horse breezed past them at a seemingly impossible speed. The odor of decay of burning flesh surrounded him.

"Holy crap!" Crash cried, "That thing is freaking huge!"

Indeed it was, the beast seemed twenty feet high as it sped past them, leaving a trail of fire and bloody hoof-prints in the baked soil of the desert. "_Komos! Sereventos! Arramos!_" it shouted again, and a group of quickly approaching soldiers exploded in a column of red liquid.

"Jesus Christ! _RETREAT_!" Crash shouted over the roar of battle, "RETREAT TO THE ROCK! STAY AWAY FROM THAT BEHEMOTH!"

Without another word, the mass of defenders quickly sped away, heading towards the dark, distant structure of Pride Rock. Behind them, the wrath of the demon continued as the morning was filled with the cries of dying enemies.

"Jesus, what the hell is going on out there?" Simba asked, casting a terrified glance at an obviously frightened Crash.

"I...I dunno," the bandicoot replied, listening and looking around as explosions rocked the world, muffled by the eerily silent but overcrowded cave. They could distantly hear the dark voice of the demon ringing out, muffled by the cave walls like the explosion, but the omnipresent voice was still fully audible.

"Is that Alex?" Mufasa asked, pushing to where Alpha Company lay huddled by the entrance, weapons loaded and ready if someone decided to investigate the inner sanctum of the structure.

Crash shrugged, "I don't even know. If it is, I've never seen that form before."

"You haven't?"

"No, it would be the first time...I dunno. That doesn't seem like Alex but..."

The world shook again as more muffled explosions rocked the land. "Oi!" Kovu called out, "Crash! Get the hell over here! Quickly!"

Alarmed, Crash stood and abruptly sped through the crowd towards the back of the cave where Kovu sat. The young cub was sitting down beside a ring of candles encircling Cheet, who lay, feverish, in the center of the ring. "What's going on?" Crash asked.

"Cheet! He...he's waking up!"

Sure enough, the cub, fur matted with sweat as his fever broke, was twisting uncomfortably, making small moans as his closed eyes involuntarily rolled as if he were exploring the inside of his eyelids...he was dreaming. Suddenly, after letting loose a howl of pain, he awoke abruptly, standing up with his eyes open wide as he yelled, "Alex!"

Crash was immediately at the cub's side, desperately trying to calm him, "Cheet! Cheet, it's okay! It's okay!"

"Wh...where's Alex?"

"It's me, Crash! It's okay, Cheet, it's okay."

"Where's Alex?"

"He's outside, he's okay, everything's okay, don't worry."

Gasping for breath, Cheet nodded vigorously, and, shivering, he said, "I'm cold..."

"You're feverish, don't worry, that will pass."

"Will I be okay?"

"Yes, you will be okay, just...rest. Just rest."

Cheet glanced around in alarm, starting as more explosions rocked the world and the demon's Draconic speech continued to ring out throughout the early morning. "What's that?" Cheet asked.

"Nothing," Crash lied, "I don't hear anything," he sent vicious glances to everyone surrounding them.

"I hear something..."

"You must be hearing things."

"Agreed," Kovu agreed, and the others surrounding them nodded in agreement, though their facial expressions said differently. As Crash knelt to continue healing the cub, his radio buzzed, and he took the call.

"Vaughn, you there?" Elliot asked.

"Crash here for Alex."

"Dammit, Bandicoot, where's Alex?"

Holding off answering, Crash turned to Cheet and the others and said, "Hold on, let me take this call, I'll be right back."

After Crash left the crowded cave, he answered, "He ain't here."

"Well, where is he?"

"I...don't know."

"What?"

"You heard me, what do you want?"

"We are approximately an hour from your location, we're hearing something odd."

"What do you hear?"

"Some kind of...demonic chant?"

"Oh...well...tell your troops that if they see some kind of demonic figure riding a demonic horse, leave them alone."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"The demon is helping us...I think...and even if it isn't, I've seen it utter words that cause men to explode into red soup."

"What? I don't understand...what kind of crappy joke is this, Bandicoot?"

"It's no joke, just...be careful."

"...O...kay?"

"Anyways, I'll see you once you arrive, Crash out."

As the hellish speech of the demon continued, and the hellish battle raged on, Crash returned to the cave, and finished healing the terrified cub.

"Alex..." Cheet said, his voice layered with sadness.

Crash couldn't help but to feel bad for the poor cub, but, right now, Cheet was the least of his worries. The moment their commander disappeared, this demonic entity arrives, starts brutally slaying their enemies by his mere voice, and Crash was unsure if the demon was attacking solely their enemy, or slaughtering anyone and everyone who came across his path. Crash feared that the demon would vanquish the LKA, then would suddenly have a change of heart, and would turncoat, killing the militia as well.

And the worse part of all, Alex, their head, their leader, was nowhere to be found. Could it be possible that Alex was, in fact, the demon? That the vicious beast of hell causing turmoil outside as it brutally slaughtered everyone was another power that Alex had discovered? If so, Crash feared about just where the Terminator's notorious mutant division reached its limits. Alpha Company was already powerful, possessing abilities far exceeding any that anyone had ever known existed...and yet, even after five years of being exposed to the mutation serum, powers were still being discovered, and the mutants were still growing ever more powerful.

Sergeant Crash Bandicoot was lost for words, and for the first time in years, he felt like he had done back before he was mutated and assimilated into Great Commander Alex Vaughn's fledgling army. He felt like the wordless, language-less, insane animal he once was, before the mutation serum granted him intelligence, language, and blessed sanity. He managed a smile at the thought of all those kids who were playing the apparently famous Crash Bandicoot games, games the bandicoot didn't even know existed before Alex told him so. At first, the bandicoot was disbelieving, then Alex had revealed a PlayStation copy of the first game of the series. While Crash watched the Commander play, the bandicoot was deeply disturbed that the game depicted his misadventures so accurately. Exactly how much power did the militia hold? Everything they seemed familiar with turned out to be real, while things they didn't proved nonexistant. Crash couldn't help but think of what his apparent fanbase would think if they met their icon, a far cry from the stereotypical 'inadvertent hero' that the games depicted him as.

_What the hell was the Terminator Militia really?_

"Any ideas?" Knuckles the Echidna asked, polishing the stock of his AK47, "Because I'm totally lost here."

"I...don't know," Crash replied truthfully, sighing.

"Until the Commander and Piermont turn up, and Cheet fully recovers from his little...accident...you're next in line for command, Sarge."

"I know," Crash replied, remembering the Order of Command Alex had given them during the debriefing after the mission that had ultimately cost Northwestern Regional Commander Rapid his life, "But I don't know what to do. I'm still a little shaken at this...thing...slaughtering those soldiers out there."

"At least it's on our side."

"At least for now, Corporal. It's hard telling if he will maintain that place. It-he-could turn on us at any moment."

"I say, just wait this out, we'll figure out somethin' eventually," Sonic chimed in, playing with his massive Bowie knife. He then began carving into the soft sand of the floor, sketching wild and elaborate runes which was little but doodles.

"I'm game with that," Crash replied with a nod.

"Yeah, one question though."

"What, Sergeant?"

"The hell we gonna do with him?" here Sonic pointed at Cheet with the tip of his knife, "He doesn't know about what's going on, and frankly, I'm scared to tell him the truth. Alex and Piermont are missing, that inhuman monster is raising hell outside, we're in the middle of a battle...or whatever this is now...and the cub's been out cold for days."

"I'm not gonna tell him anything."

"What? Are we just gonna leave him grasping for straws?"

"Yep."

"Wow, why?"

"I'm monitoring his mental stability, the last thing I need is for him to go on a tangent and accidentally kill someone in the confusion. He's delirious right now, I don't want to poke and prod the sleeping bear."

"I'm worried about him going off on a tangent because we refuse to tell him anything, I mean, technically speaking, he holds a higher rank above us until the Commander concludes his training."

"Eh...good point...but I'm still holding my beliefs."

"Reasoning?"

"Gut feeling."

"Ha! The last time you relied on your gut, Alex and Pierre were in the psych ward, and we were struggling to get them out."

"Don't remind me."

"It's true!"

"Yes it is, but I don't need to be reminded."

"It should tell you something. Something like, 'don't trust my gut!'"

Crash glared at Sonic, who only matched his glare with a bemused raise of the eyebrow. "Screw you," the bandicoot replied, embittered.

"Screw you, too," Sonic countered in an arrogant tone.

Crash looked away and shook his head, "When will things return to normal?"

"Once they decide to."

"You're not helping, Sonic."

"And neither are you. Jesus, you suck at filling the Commander's place, at least he always had a plan."

Crash sent Sonic another warning glance.

"What?" Sonic replied innocently, "It's the truth."

"Just...sit down, shut up."

"C'mon _Sergeant_! Think! _Thiiiink_! Think like you never have before! You are, after all, supposed to be _Mr. Bossman _of our little group right now."

"You are really starting to piss me off, Sonic."

"Then remove this thorn in your side by actually creating a battle plan. We're little but sitting ducks right now, it's only time until something bad happens and we end up meeting our fates in this cavernous crypt."

"I'm trying, Sonic!" here Crash raised his voice, as anger truly began to boil over.

Sonic, equally irritated, then shouted, "Well, try harder! If you don't freaking come up with something, you might as well have signed our freaking death warrants! I refuse to be commanded to sit down and wait for my demise. I'm not one to sit and 'wait it out'. I want action, I've already rested long enough. You may hold precedence over me because you arrived earlier, but your leadership skills are crappy to say the very least, and need huge improvement. Right now, you are not cut out for the job. If you can't lead us, then relinquish your powers to someone who can."

"And who is this 'someone'? Huh? Right now, I am the most quali-"

"Bull. You are _not _the most qualified here! The Commander only granted you a higher placement because you were then the oldest member aside from the Commander himself, since Simba and Nala weren't there. Now, however, Simba and Nala are, and personally, I think they could lead us. They have skills that you lack. Sure you are good with your hands, as a medic and healer, I would hope so, but you do not have the required skills to lead this army. Once we carry through this, I will personally submit a report to Alex, informing him of your inadequacy to lead his army during his absence. I have more than enough witnesses to back my claim, if you're feeling lucky you overconfident, self-centered prick, challenge my threat. I dare you."

Crash was struck silent. His jaw was dropped, and his expression was of stunned surprise. Sonic, fuming as he desperately attempted to keep his cool and control his fury, was glaring at him, hatred burning deeply in the hedgehog's eyes. His breathing was stressed, and his nostrils flared, but his confidence of the stability of the foundation beneath his argument was evidenced by the arrogant smirk on his face. He was right, every statement was true, and Crash knew better than to challenge a valid claim with so many witnesses to support it.

With a sigh, Crash relaxed his stiffened muscles and unclenched his fists, closing his eyes as he bowed his head and sighed, sitting back down on the hard ground, "You're right," the bandicoot admitted, exhausted.

"It's about time you realized that."

"Fine then, Sonic, you lead this army, since I'm obviously not qualified to."

"Neither am I."

"Yes you are," Knuckles replied.

"I agree," Tails added with a nod.

"Ditto," Kovu agreed.

"I think you could pull it off," Simba replied reassuringly, and Sonic was touched to see that the four-star general and the first member of the militia agreed.

"So do I," Nala added cheerfully, "I've seen you in battle, you are a natural born leader, whether or not you realize it. I've seen soldiers look upon you as a leader in battle."

"No," Sonic replied, "I appreciate how you all feel, but I can't do it. The Commander's shoes are too big for me to fill."

"You are really the only one qualified to lead us," Kiara said, "You have the confidence, the strength, the charisma, hell, even the arrogance that signifies a good leader. You could do this, I know you can. You have my full support."

Realizing that everyone would praise him as the leader, whether or not he wanted it, Sonic reluctantly accepted the position thrust upon him, much to the chagrin of an irritated Crash.

"Now," Knuckles began, "What should we do?"

After a few moments of consideration, Sonic finally nodded in agreement as he said, "For one thing, let's start with having a little chat and meeting our buddy out there."

This seemed to spark some fear in the crowd, but one reassuring glance from the hedgehog eased their troubled thoughts, and they rose, taking up arms.

"C'mon," Sonic said, a smile on his face, "Let's finish this fight."

"Ura!" Simba cried, and the others in the crowd followed suit.

Genuinely touched that so many looked up to him, Sonic struggled to maintain self-control as he raised his knife above his head and cried the infamous Terminator battle-cry, "_URA_!"

With another "ura" from the chorus of voices in the massive crowd, Sonic confidently and doubtlessly marched through the caves towards the entrance, leading the army like shepherds lead a flock of sheep.

"Ura!" the Terminator Militia cried as they marched across the plains.

The invading force, those remaining as the demon continued to annihilate them, froze in their tracks as they spotted the advancing group. Immediately, they shoved aside fears of the demon, still somewhere in the center of the invasion force, and attacked the arriving groups. Arranging the group into 'V' formation, the militia's surrogate leader spread out, efficiently attacking the quickly advancing frontlines.

As the frontlines clashed, Necrodusk allowed the militia to charge the front as he stepped up his efforts in the heart of the invasion force. _Give me back control_, the weak mental voice of Alex whispered.

"Not yet, Commander," Necrodusk replied.

_That's an order._

"Your orders are ineffective, as you can not take action. Do not worry, you will regain control...after I'm finished."

_Stand down!_

"Heh, you are in no position to give orders, Commander."

"Good job! Keep it up!" Sonic cheered, quickly eliminating four enemy troops who had surrounded him. "Let's finish this battle! Ura!"

"_URA!_"

Suddenly, a row of massive fireballs rose over the dark skies, arching as they came down, crashing into rear of the invasion force. Through Crash's radio, he could hear the cheery, bloolust-laced voice of General Robert Elliot crying, "Haha! Take that you stupid sons of bitches! Here is your _8 AM WAKE UP CALL!_"

As reinforcements arrived on both sides, Elliot's command tank quickly dispatched the enemy reinforcements as his troops tore through the wall of LKA soldiers, bifurcating the invasion first horizontally, then vertically. With the opposition in quarters, the Terminator Militia easily penetrated the quartered forces and were absorded in the masses. With Terminator soldiers evenly dispersed in the LKA invasion force, the LKA's ordered troops found themselves attacked on all sides, and they were forced to attack anything and everything, both friend and foe.

As the body count shot up, the carefully ordered force collapsed into turmoil, as chaos and confusion were set loose. Through the fire of both friend and foe, the battle had reached it's most dangerous point, as many soldiers were forced to resort to hand-to-hand combat, and close quarters were not good to have multiple sword fights in. Still, Sonic confidently led his small band of elite soldiers, and within moments, they had rendezvoused with their reinforcements. "Well, well, well!" Elliot called in good spirits, shouting "Hiya!" as he sliced an LKA swordsman into two vertical pieces.

"It's good to see a friendly face," Sonic said, effortlessly decapitating his broadsword-wielding assailant.

"So it is," Elliot fired a single round of his Wolfram P2K, scoring a direct headshot as a soldier who had decided to go on a banzai charge. "Why isn't Crash leadin'? Actually, where is that sumbitch?"

"He...stepped down," with a quick burst from his AK47, three more LKA troops were downed.

"Did he? Or did a coup overthrow him?" here the battle-hardened general let out a genuine boom of a laugh.

"Eh...I overthrew him."

"Why?"

"He isn't qualified to be a leader. He wanted to stay in that cave and wait out the battle."

"Really?"

"Really, I wouldn't have it."

"Finally," Elliot fired his AK47, taking down a group of charging troops, "Someone besides me notices."

"I will submit an official report to Alex once we find him."

"You have my back, Sarge."

"Hehe, perhaps you can...recommend me for a promotion?"

"Perhaps I can figure out somethin'."

Both of them shared a laugh, even as they killed their attackers, emptying an entire clip a piece into the panicking LKA forces.

_Wow, Sonic is one helluva leader._ Alex's mental voice said, laced with a shred of admiration. They were watching as the hedgehog led Alpha Company and the lions into battle. _He even managed to get everyone into a perfect 'V' formation, hell,_ I _haven't even been able to do that._

"Perhaps," Necrodusk muttered, "You can promote him," Alex was stunned to realize that even the hellish fiend that had seized his and Prancy's bodies was filled with admiration at Sonic's expert leadership skills.

_I'm fully intending to...once I regain control._

"Yeah, yeah, you will get your control."

_Soon?_

"Once this invasion is repelled."

_Then take your time. I can't feel your hits, and this is like watching the most badass war movie ever made._

Even the demon let out a gritty chuckle at this joke, "Ah, but it is so much more fun participating."

_Watching is every bit as good as well. The world's most realistic FPS._

"FPS?"

_First Person Shooter, a genre of video game. Halo for the win!_

"Video game? Halo?"

_Eh...nevermind. Look out! Your six!_

"_Komos! Sereventos! Arramos!_" the demon's potential assassin suddenly collapsed, doubling over and moaning as his flesh bubbled, and he exploded in a pillar of red liquid. "I got it, Commander."

_Uh huh...sure you do. Don't hurt my body, I'm too young to die._

"You are never too young to die, Commander."

With the combined forces of the lions, Alpha Company, Terminator reinforcements, and Necrodusk, the LKA invasion party soon began their retreat. However, the Terminators didn't stop their offensive, and even as the LKA struggled to flee, they saw many more casualties as their troops were shot in the back and killed. After pursuing the fleeing invaders for several miles, the militia finally lost them across a river and in a riverside African metropolis. Though it wouldn't be difficult to locate the invaders and kill them off, the militia did not want to accidentally kill civilians or damage property and cause an international incident.

After seeing the invaders off, the militia gathered around Pride Rock, resting as the sun began to rise in the East. Necrodusk, watching the gathered friendlies from his perch on a kopje overlooking the valley holding the symbolic structure, spoke to his mental companion, My time here is finished...for now. The thrill of battle feels good in my blood, but so does resting. This battle sapped my stamina, affected by being dormant for so long. You may have control again, and if you ever need any additional help, call upon me, and I will return. The hour does not matter, the heat of battle shakes away my fatigue.

Alex was then pulled away from the eyes of the demon, finding himself in a beautiful, stone sanctuary. The massive walls and ceiling were beautifully carved, and candles surrounded the room as the Commander saw a massive shrine, depicting an obsidian dragon. For the first time, Alex saw the demon in the flesh, appearing as he did to everyone who laid eyes upon him while he controlled his host. Necrodusk sat in a massive bone throne at the head of the room upon a raised, marble platform.

Alex, feeling small and vulnerable compared to the demon, knelt, not of worship, but of respect, and said, "Thank you for your help."

"You are most welcome, Commander."

When Alex opened his eyes, he was back in the real world, on the perch overlooking his force, now doubled over, blinded by the blinding, white flash that acommpanied his transformation. He sat upon Prancy's back, and the reindeer, groaning and shaking his head, asked, "What happened?"

Alex scampered off the reindeer's back and, petting his muzzle affectionately, said, "We won."

Alex's face suddenly was overcame with a twisted grimace, and Prancy asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yes," he lied.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Still worried, but laying his questions aside, Prancy began to stumble down the kopje, and Alex, beginning his own descent, mumbled beneath his breath, "Piermont..."


	6. Chapter VI: The Rise of the Terminators

_**Chapter VI**_**:**

**-''The Rise of the Terminators''-**

**-Connorsville, Illinois-**

**-_08 January 2003_-**

**-_2147 Hours_-**

Several days passed by without word from Piermont, and the Commander, growing increasingly concerned, was beginning to fear the worse. Following the battle, the militia had returned to Connorsville, minus one soldier, but having two new ones added to their force.

"Thank you for everything you have done for us," Mufasa had told Alex.

"You're welcome," the Commander had replied, bowing down.

"I would like to compensate you for what you did for us, you saved our lives, our home, and my son."

"I don't need any compensation, Your Majesty."

Then, Mufasa, smiling and laughing a genuine laugh, said, "I want you to take Simba and Nala with you, they deserve to be at your side more than they deserve to be looked up here. They're natural born soldiers, not lazy lions like the rest of us. Take care of them."

Overjoyed that his two original members were returning to Alpha Company, Alex had replied with a nod, saying, "Yes sir."

While they were heading towards the desert airfield where their chopper waited to take them back home, Alex had called Sonic aside.

"Yes, Commander?" the hedgehog had replied once he and the Commander were alone.

"What you did out there was amazing, Sonic."

"I was only leading your army in your absence. Crash's inadequacy would have had us killed, they needed to be led, and I rose to the challenge."

"I know, and you succeeded. You implemented methods and somehow maintained order that even I could not, and because of your exemplary actions, I am promoting you to Captain."

Genuinely stunned by the Commander's proposal, Sonic eagerly nodded and thanked Alex for his kindness.

"You do not need to thank me Sonic, it is _I _who should thank _you_, your extraordinary actions led our army to victory, even in the absence of the entire High Command. Without being ordered, you rose to the challenge, infusing my team with pride and confidence. Your actions are nothing less than heroic, and should be honored as such. Without you, we would have lost the battle, and we would not have survived. I am very impressed, and so overjoyed with what you did, that no amount of words can explain my admiration. Your bravery and persistence, your confidence and influence, all point to more than just a simple promotion, you should hold a medal to show what you've done, and I will personally see to it that you receive one."

The mention of being rewarded with a medal only further stunned and surprised the unsuspecting Sonic. If anything, he had expected nothing more than a single-rank promotion, but the Commander had promoted him several ranks, as well as offered to give him a medal for his courage...never before had Sonic loved Alex more than he did there. The amount of happiness the Commander felt was obviously difficult to explain, and no matter what he said, or how much he emphasized it, there was no way the Commander could truly show how proud he was of the hedgehog. Sonic also felt a deep, secret pride for the knowledge that Crash would definitely be bumped down on the Chain of Command list, and that Sonic would rise to take the bandicoot's former place.

"It's amazing what one moment of actually having balls can achieve ain't it?" Sonic had joked.

"I couldn't agree more," Alex had laughed, and, wrapping his arm around the hedgehog's shoulders the two had walked to the helipad and boarded the machine. As the chopper had risen in the late afternoon skies and set out for North America, Alex had looked out the window and seen the pride of lions standing upon their rock, watching the departure of their heroes and saviors, and now unquestionable allies.

"I'm sure Piermont is okay," Cheet said, trying desperately to calm his friend and mentor down.

"I hope so, Cheet," Alex replied with a sigh, "I'm getting worried about him."

"Don't worry, he's been through far worse situations, he always survives. He's like a goddamn zombie, _he won't stay down!"_

"True...but sometimes even the luckiest of individuals run into a bad patch of luck."

"He'll come home. In fact, I bet you anything that he's on his way now."

"Why didn't he come sooner?"

"There could be many reasons," the cub replied, "He could have been unconscious, got lost in the battle, and then once he decided to regroup, he couldn't find his squad, and realized that we had left him behind. There could be so many options as to his absence, and none of them have anything to do with death or severe injury. Piermont has balls, and that bastard won't stop for anything until he is satisfied, you of all people should know that."

"He's not exactly who you think he is, Cheet."

"What do you mean, Alex?"

"I mean that he's not really that ballsy, arrogant son of a bitch he appears to be. It's not real, it's just a facade, he puts it on for show, to look cool, in all reality, however, his personality isn't exactly like that, it's actually quite the opposite...but his resentment for Cherub is as real as you and I."

"Why doesn't he show it to us? Doesn't he trust us?"

"He does, but he wants to look badass compared to you guys, whether it's because he's jealous, or he just naturally has low self-esteem, I don't know...but he really isn't what he appears to be."

"Maybe he just wants to show his superiority over us?"

"I doubt it, there are a number of soldiers who came before he did, and he still acts that way towards them."

"Maybe he wants to show that his standing as the dragon of the Great Commander gives him a higher superiority, or he wants to make himself look much more hardened and cool to the general populace than what he really is. Maybe he sees his natural kindness as a weakness, or not living up to the set standards and expectations that he, as the dragon of the veteran leader of the Terminator Militia, is obligated to show to the public."

"Maybe. I don't know, I just want him back here safe and sound."

"Don't worry, Alex," Cheet said, hugging his friend, "He will...don't worry."

A few days passed, and Piermont did indeed show up.

Alex sat on the couch, Cheet sprawled across his lap, gently petting the purring cheetah cub as he watched a movie on the television. The others of Alpha Company and his own family had long since retired for the night, and the pair were the only ones awake in the house. Alex was just about to retire for the night when there came a quiet knock on the door. Confused at who could have been visiting so late at night, Alex silently revealed one of his P2Ks and quickly attached the silencer. Moving quietly, he opened the door to see a haggard-looking Piermont, in his human form, standing outside in the cold night, the snow from the blizzard blowing around him, shivering.

"Dammit Alex! Let me in!"

Alex did, stunned and happy to see his dragon, "Piermont! You're okay!"

"Of course I'm okay! What the hell, man? You left me behind! Really?"

"I thought you were dead."

"What? Oh c'mon! You couldn't have at least waited another hour or two?"

"The hell were you at?"

"I got shot down over the Serengeti, landed right in the middle of the invasion party. Fought my to the rock, couldn't find you, then checked inside the caves, still couldn't find you, then returned to the battlefield, and boom! I was surrounded by soldiers, I killed them, and one of their goddamn artillery shells struck nearby, knocking me out cold. Woke up after the battle, and you guys were gone."

"Sorry..."

"Yeah, yeah..."

Alex eagerly embraced his dragon, hugging him tightly as Piermont protested, "Yeah, okay, okay."

"I missed you."

"I missed you, too..." then, smiling mischievously, Piermont whispered, "You son of a bitch."

Alex broke away the embrace and playfully punched the dragon's shoulder, "Shut the hell up."

"Ow!" Piermont exclaimed, rubbing his shoulder, "That hurt."

"Oh stop being a baby, I didn't even hit you that hard."

"You're mean," despite the apparent harshness in their words, both parties maintained wide, mischievous smiles.

"Well," Alex said, yawning, "I'm going to bed, Cheet? You comin' with?"

The cub nodded vigorously and, yawning, followed the Commander into the massive bedroom Alpha Company shared.

"'Night," Piermont called, "I'm gonna take a shower, I feel disgusting."

With the excitement over the Battle of Pride Rock gone as the frightening battle become but a memory in the colorful history of the Terminator Militia, life returned to normal for Alex and his troops, or at least, as normal as their lives _could _be. With no current assignments, or any planned at the moment, the soldiers of Alpha Company were inevitably sent back to school, but, at least they no longer had to deal with daycare anymore. Now in 4th Grade, things were starting to get easier, as little by little, both the students at Thomas Jefferson Elementary grew used to the common sight of the mythical characters always around Alex, and their superiority over their pupils as they aged made life for them much easier to cope with.

However, everything was not perfect, and Alex still had occasional run-ins with bullies and new students, however, if faced with a great event that he couldn't handle, or that he refused to, a tall and muscular Piermont, having grown much since his arrival, was quick to defend his friends. Unlike the Commander's normal, warring personality, he maintained his natural lone wolf personality at school, isolating himself from all but his group of familiars. If challenged, he usually walked away, unaffected and not wanting to waste his time against potential tormentors. Even with his blank attitude towards bullies and the sheer intimidation he, along with his dragon and squadmates, sparked on everyone, trouble still found it's way into their lives.

Alex would resist the fights, the damage, the hurtful actions dealt on him by his fellow pupils. He had experienced much worse out on the battlefield, and bullies were nothing compared to the horrors of war. Despite his social awkwardness and anti-social behavior, he actively participated in the classroom, and his teachers were stunned by his intelligence. Compared to the rest of the school, he was among the most intelligent, possessing not only book smarts, but also street smarts, and those not dedicated to baiting emotions from him and his friends admired his courage, his kindness, his almost mythical status, his mystery, his intimidation, and his strategic smarts.

During recess, he still sat on the old fire escape, surrounded only by Alpha Company. Even if they had nothing to say to each other, they clustered together, always watching each others back. Many seemed confused by this, and rumors broke out as to why they did so, some less pleasant than others, but the real reason was because of their closeness. Having fought alongside the Terminator Militia's notorious mutant division, having risked his life for them, the bond Alex shared with them was intensely strong, and they were difficult to separate. Only with the soldiers of Alpha Company did he feel completely safe, able to fully let his guard down, they all knew each others secrets, fears, passions...and they were all willing to risk their lives to save each other.

Because of this, talking about personal things, and speaking personal statements such as 'I love you' to each other was not uncommon. It wasn't because of some kind of mutual romantic attraction, it was because they were a family, and treated each other as very close brothers. Often, when referring to their familiars, they would describe them as 'my brothers' because in their eyes, they were so.

However, their constant reference to each other as a family did spark some concern amongst the adults, as they feared that the group was a gang, or a mafia-type club. When forced to be divided from their brethren, they refused to participate, even accepting bad grades, just because they were not paired together. Because of this, when teams were created, the militia always remained together as one team. The children largely avoided Alex and his party, partly because of intimidation, partly because of their well-known history of death and bloodshed, but primarily because of their social awkwardness. Nobody wanted to be around the unpopular kids, and even Piermont, as he aged, found himself no longer as popular as he once was, and proudly chose to associate himself with the 'rejects' rather than the popular kids.

In their cluster, they usually recounted stories of war, stories of valor, or other shared experiences, and when the other children _would _acknowledge or gather around them, it was to overhear one of their tales. Despite their rocky educational experiences, they came to enjoy school, finding it took their minds off of the nightmares and experiences that plagued their dreams every night. Alex also found himself less emotionally crippled when in the classroom. Still unable to recover from Rapid's untimely death, the only times he seemed happy were in the classroom or in the heat of battle. Their military experience did have some benefits as well, for example, they were stars of gym class. They were all at the top of their physical fitness, and were masters at game such as dodgeball.

The bullies that did still come around usually left them alone after several failed attempts to spark any kind of emotions, and they never grew physical, usually they relied solely on words to emotionally harm them. Their hearts already long-since hardened from battle, they were resistant to these emotional attacks, with the exception being a few minor instances where an emotional attack hit close to home...such as Rapid's death.

Months after the skunk met his fate, it was still the talk of the town, and Alex still had random students approach him, telling him how they had just heard about "your friend's death," and how they were sorry to hear so. Alex was deeply affected by these statements, and many times, Piermont or one of the others had to intervene when they spotted a random student approaching, as they knew what was going to be said.

Upon their first day back after the Battle of Pride Rock, Sabrina Ford, close friend and secret crush of Alex, called them aside and said, "Alex! You're back! And you brought Simba and Nala, too!"

"Hey Sabrina," Cheet said with a toothy smile, "It's been awhile!"

"Yes it has, Cheet," turning to Alex, she said, "I missed you! What happened? Where were you?"

"I...got caught up in a mission...you know how that goes..."

"Where did you go?"

"Pride Rock, got far more than we suspected."

"Is that where you were hurt?"

Although Alex's injuries, possessing the ability to heal extremely fast, had mostly cleared, a few fragments showing evidence of injury still remained, such as his now-excessive use of his cane to walk. Before, the cane was more of a decoration, but now, Alex limped with it, and although he hadn't noticed, Sabrina had.

"Yeah, that's where I got hurt."

"What happened?"

Suddenly, the bell rang, and Alex turned to her, "I'll tell you at lunch, okay?"

"Okay, see you!"

"See you!"

Alex entered his homeroom class, but was immediately pulled aside by his teacher.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"You're not in here anymore."

"What? Why?"

"You and your friends were transferred to Mr. Rogers class."

"Mr. Rogers?"

"Yeah, he's just down the hall."

Confused, Alex gathered his personal items and left, his squadmates and brethren closely in tail. Upon arrival of their new classroom, they saw a sign on the door that said, "Welcome to Mr. Roger's Neighborhood!" and Piermont, struggling to hold back a laugh, glanced at an equally amused Alex.

"Well..._this _will be fun!" Piermont laughed, "Let's go!"

They entered the classroom to find Mr. Rogers in the middle of a lecture. Upon entry, their teacher glanced at them, asking, "Can I help you?"

Being the first male teacher the militia ever had, Alex was surprised, and didn't know how to react to him. Mr. Rogers was young, with buzz-cut hair, glasses, and wearing a clean white polo, black tie, and black dress pants. Alex then said, "We were transferred...apparently."

"Names?"

"Commander Vaughn, Alex, 577-113-218AV."

Rogers seemed surprised by Alex's introduction, and when the others in Alex's party answered similarly, he remarked, "You know the military very well."

"We are the Terminator Militia," Piermont replied, "I'd hope we'd know military."

"Terminator Militia? You mean, _the _Terminator Militia?"

"Yeah...something wrong?" Alex queried, confused.

"I've heard so much about the militia, I just didn't think it'd be run by a bunch of kids," his tone was light, as if disbelieving, but playing along.

"I'm being serious," Alex replied, frown replacing his smile, "I founded this army back in 1997."

"Really?"

"Aye, look us up if you don't believe us," as Alex said this, he noted a flag hanging on the wall: U.S Army.

"Holy crap!" Piermont whispered, "You seein' what I'm seein'? He really is Mr. Rogers."

"Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood Mr. Rogers was U.S Marines...I think...not U.S Army."

"You a military man?" Cheet asked the teacher.

Mr. Rogers looked up at the cub and said, "Yes, I am. U.S Army."

"Cool, our teacher is a brother! We got a crapload of stories to exchange methinx," Piermont replied, "It's good to actually have a teacher who understands us and our positions for once."

Cheet then nudged Alex in the ribs and whispered, "Something tells me we are going to have some fun this year."

That day, at lunch, Alex and Alpha Company were conversing amongst themselves when an all-too familiar voice rang out through the air, "Hey! Teacher's pet!"

Alex stopped dead in his tracks, recognizing the voice all too well.

"Bloody hell, it's Bert," Piermont muttered, "Son of a-"

"Who's Bert?" Cheet asked.

"The most worthless piece of crap you'll ever meet."

"He hates our guts," Alex sighed.

"Oi! Teacher's pet! Get your fat ass over here!"

"Go to hell you son of a bitch!" Piermont shouted.

"What did you just say to me? Huh?"

Bert approached, fists clenched, Piermont nonchalantly put his lunch tray down on a nearby table as he transformed into his dragon form. Bert shielded his eyes with his scarred hands as the blinding white light accompanying the transformation dissipated. Fully recovered, the bully approached the huddled Alpha Company. Bert was a big boy, with short, unruly, fiery red hair, a heavily freckled face, a pig's nose, a gap between his front teeth, and angry hazel eyes. His face and one of his hands was also heavily scarred after a showdown he had had with Rapid a few years earlier back when they all still went to daycare.

"Leave him alone, Bertram," Alex said, a tone of annoyance in his voice.

One of the easiest ways to anger Bert, calling him by his full name. "You need to shut your goddamn mouth, sissy boy, before I have to knock it out."

"Oh! I'm so scared of a sissy ass piece of crap who still wets the bed."

This sent the bully over the edge, but Alex, his arms crossed, smiled in wild pleasure, he was enjoying tormenting his tormentor.

"You are so lucky I'm on probation, else I would wipe the floor with your bloody ass."

"Aww, what did the big boy do now, hmm?"

"Shut the hell up now before I kill you."

Alex, arms uncrossed, suddenly rose to his full height and moved closer to Bert. Alex was a full foot and a half taller than the small fat boy, but Bert laughed at the Commander's display of superiority.

"You think that will hurt me? Everyone knows you are a wuss, couldn't even save your best fwiend from dying now could you?"

This set Alex over the edge, and as his fists tightened, his eyes burned with a wild fire, and Alpha Company, realizing that Bert had just signed his death warrant, quickly dispersed, staying as far away from the Commander as possible.

"You take that back you son of a bitch!" Alex hissed, flames beginning to crawl up his clenched arms and fists.

"Or what? You gonna sic your little kitty on me?"

"I will kill you!"

"Oh really? You don't scare me, we all know you're the dog that doesn't bite, all bark."

"Shut your goddamn mouth," Alex hissed through his clenched teeth.

"Oh look! Is the sissy gonna beat me up? Pfft, I've seen kittens more intimidating than you."

Piermont, hiding behind a table, muttered, "Oh great Bert, _now _you've done it."

"C'mon. Right now, if you think you're so frigging tough. Let's duke it out, since your pissy buddy is long gone and rotten."

Fire burning brightly in the Commander's eyes, Alex used his telekinesis, and Bert was thrown across the room with an immense force. Roaring in fury, various objects throughout the room began levitating as Alex sent them at the bully. Bert, frightened, called out for his cronies to help him, but his friends, having witnessed the brutal showdown between Bert and Rapid, did not come to his aide. Instead, they fled the cafeteria. Realizing he was entirely on his own, Bert began to whimper as he backed up attempting to get away.

Alex, eyes glowing bright white, suddenly began to undergo a dark transformation as he called on the power of Necrodusk. In another flash of light the massive shadow-demon stood where the Commander had once stood. Students screamed and ran as more and more objects began to levitate and fly at the cowardly bully.

_Do with him what you want_, Alex mentally told Necrodusk, _Just make sure he suffers_.

There came the sound of shaking metal, and suddenly, a wall of knives dislodged from the wall, flying at Bert and narrowly missing him. The bully was crying as the world went into total chaos. Bert, finally managing to pick himself up, made a speed dash for the double doors leading out of the cafeteria, however, they shut quickly, latching, and locking the dualing duo inside the room.

"Wh...what are you?" Bert squealed, sobbing as he saw the demon approach him.

Speaking in his deep, layered voice, Alex replied, "I am the subject of your nightmares, the harbinger of your demise, I am your worst fear, I...am Necrodusk."

The demon's telekinesis, exponentially more powerful than Alex's, sent the bully flying through the cinderblock walls. 

"Pl...please don't hurt me!"

"TOO LATE!" the demon laughed it's bone-chilling laugh, "You should not have opened old wounds. Now, you will regret it."

The wall of knives suddenly came flying again, stabbing and narrowly missing the bully. Each stab of the blades caused him to scream and cry as he tried to pull himself away. Alex, however, was relentless, and having given the bully more than enough chances to stand down, the bully's stubborn persistence had penetrated the hard shell controlling Alex's fury. Now, floodgates opened wide, true terror and hell was released, as Bert was subject to Alex's full wrath.

Never before had anyone sparked the true anger in Alex, and now that it was loose, it could not be bottled. As the demon approached him, and Bert continued to crawl away, the inner soldier, the ruthless, merciless veteran that Alex really was came forward. As Alex transformed into his normal self, Bert was terrified to see...he was on fire!

Hands and arms covered in flames that did not char his skin or burn him, Bert, now in the playground, huddled down as the Commander stood over him. "Don't! Please!" the bully cried.

"Too little, too late! _Komos! Sereventos! Arramos!_"

Bert howled in pain as his skin began to boil. "Wh...what's going on! NO! NO STOP! PLEASE!" he let out a hellish wail as his skin began to crack, and blood seeped through, dripping down his body from the supernatural wounds. As the human Alex unleashed the demon's most powerful move, he glowed a rich black, and as the bully continued to wail, he fell back, letting loose a hellish scream as his body exploded. Blood spewed in every direction, painting the field red, as the Commander, watching the gruesome end, smiled in sadistic pleasure.

A puddle of boiling blood marked where the bully formerly known as Bert once stood. Suddenly, wind shot from Alex's body, knocking everyone in the immediate area down as the glow dissipated, Alex's glowing eyes closed, and he limply collapsed to the ground. As Alex, ears ringing, slowly picked himself up, nearly falling from dizziness, he turned to see the students of Thomas Jefferson Elementary staring at him, looks of extreme terror frozen on their faces. From the frightened, blood-spattered crowd arose a sea of screams as they scattered...and soon, only Alpha Company remained.

Bert's cronies, apparently having finally mustered the strength, charged to confront the Commander, but upon seeing all the blood that had once been their former master, they too stood down and ran like hell. Suffering from a migraine and blood running from his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears, Alex turned to face his army. They too stood in place, terrified, unable to believe what they're commander had just done. As he took a step towards him, Alpha Company backed away, and fled, leaving the blood-stained Alex alone in the empty, freezing playground.

"Where's Alex?" Sabrina asked, running up to the frightened Alpha Company, "What in the hell happened? I've heard that some terrifying stuff happened over lunch, and now everyone has this terrified look on their faces."

"Where've _you _been?" Piermont asked, breathing deeply in an attempt to calm his nerves.

"I had a Cheerleaders meeting, if you really must know."

"You missed one helluva show," Cheet stated, shuddering at the memory.

"Mind telling me what it is?"

"Ask Alex," Crash replied, brows furrowed and a disgusted look on his face, "You might just catch him outside, still standing in the middle of that massive bloodstain he caused."

"What are you talking about?"

But Alpha Company said no more, and Sabrina watched, confused, as the members of Alpha Company headed upstairs towards their afternoon class. Deeply concerned, Sabrina put on her coat and ran outside.

She almost immediately understood what had terrified the others.

Alex, red with blood, stood on the edge of the parking lot. Around her, she could very easily make out blood spatters heading from where the Commander, seemingly dazed, stood, and the distance between them was easily half the length of a football field. "Yo Alex! What the hell is going on?"

Alex, continued staring off, wide-eyed, at the blood-spattered field and parking lot around him, standing perfectly still, not speaking.

"Alex?" Sabrina asked, approaching him, "Alex, what's going on? Where did all of this blood come from?"

No answer.

"Alex!"

Still, only silence from the dazed Commander.

"_Alex! _Talk to me!"

He still did not reply.

Sighing in surrender, Sabrina turned around, about to head back to the school when Alex suddenly whispered in an eerily small boy's voice, "I...I killed him..."

Sabrina abruptly turned, "What? Killed who?"

"Him...I killed him...I really did..."

"Who? _Who did you kill_?"

"Bertram..."

"Bert? You mean you..._what did you do_!" and she began to back slowly away.

Here, Alex smiled sheepishly, eerily innocent, childish, and insane for the battle-hardened warrior, "I blew him up."

"What? How?"

"I just used the words...I used Necrodusk's words."

"Necro what?"

"Necrodusk, I used Necrodusk's words...those three magical words...then he screamed...he screamed like a schoolgirl...and poof. His skin started to bubble, almost as if it were boiling, and then he just exploded into a pillar of red soup."

Alarmed, Sabrina continued slowly backing away until she, too, turned and ran away from the stunned Commander.

-_**That Night...**_-

"What do you think happened between Alex and Bert today?" Cheet asked.

"I don't know," Piermont replied as he performed one of his favorite past times, carving. As he spoke, he carved a dragon statue from a block of wood, "But it was...horrifying."

"Did you see that...thing...that Alex turned into?" Crash asked.

"Yes," Cheet replied, his voice laced with terror, "I did."

"Look familiar?" Sonic asked.

"Yes it does..." Crash answered, "That damned monster that helped us during the Battle of Pride Rock."

"And that...shout or whatever?" Cheet asked the group.

"'_Komos, Sereventos, Arramos_. Definitely words that kill," Crash commented, shuddering, "He used that same spell or whatever on the LKA."

"Yeah, creepy as hell...I don't know what to think," Cheet replied, then, his voice adopting a tone of worry and concern as he nervously glanced towards the closed door in the hallway...the one that opened to the room where the Commander slept, "I've never seen Alex so pissed before."

Piermont snickered, "That dumb, fat bastard had it coming. He should know better than to screw around with Alex, especially concerning such a tender topic as Rapid. The Commander loved that little bastard as if he were his own son."

"And you are not in the least bit concerned about what Alex _did_?" Cheet asked the dragon, incredulous, "Don't you think he overreacted a bit much?"

"Not at all," Piermont replied, "He warned that stupid son of a bitch. But that worthless piece of crap didn't listen, as per usual. Pfft, dumbass."

"Anyways," Crash began, retrieving his laptop from it's docking station on the coffee table before them, "I took the liberty of researching that trio of words."

Then, smirking, Sonic asked, "Is this your way of trying to win back Alex's favor and regain your position on the Chain of Command? If so, good freaking luck, cause there is no way in hell I'm surrendering my new position."

"No you arrogant prick, I'm just trying to figure out what exactly happened."

"I'll tell you what happened," Piermont interrupted, a sly smirk on his face, "Street Fighter-mutant style!"

Ignoring the dragon, Crash opened his laptop and began reading, "_K__omos, Sereventos, Arramos _is an oral spell with roots in Pagan and Satanic rituals. The trio of words, though their origins are mysterious, is supposed to command a demonic spirit to come to earth and literally liquefy the victim. Loose translations by finding similar words in various archaic cultures shows _'Komos, Sereventos, Arramos' _to roughly mean 'Death of Boiling Blood' and is recognized as one of the most violent of rituals. Though written records show that this particular spell has not been used in hundreds of years, individuals claiming to have successfully summoned demons have described their sinister charges using this spell as a means to obtain a ritualistic murder required to perfect their earthly form. Records describe the ritual as a demon, or other supernatural being, leading a potential sacrifice to a ceremonial basin, where the victim was bound and tortured through various means. Then, once everything else was completed, the demon would direct this incantation at the victim. The flesh of the cursed victim would then begin to boil, then it would break and crack. The final stage of the spell would see the victim or even groups of victims, literally exploding, all parts of the body: internal organs, flesh, bone, and muscle, would be liquefied, and the being would drink the blood of their sacrifice or sacrifices."

Here, Crash closed the laptop, and glanced around at the deeply disturbed Alpha Company.

"Now," the bandicoot continued, "I don't think Alex or his...otherworldly form...use this 'spell' for ritualistic means, but as an efficient and gruesome way to eliminate opposition."

"Yeah but..." Cheet began, "Holy hell...such a terrible way to die."

"If you want to make your enemy suffer great pain, as well as ignite fear in the rest of the group, then this is the way to go," Piermont replied.

"Actually," Crash added, "Piermont is right. I don't know, but it appeared that this was an excruciatingly painful way to die."

"I don't know what the whole thing was about," Piermont interrupted, "But, I can say one thing for sure..."

"What?" Crash asked.

"Vengeance has been served. So much torture and hardship avenged with an explosive and painful ending to one of the worst bastards to have ever lived."

"Well, anyways," Crash began, standing, "We should be really getting to bed, it's getting late."

"Damn," Crash sighed into his cell phone, "Okay, I'll tell them. We'll try to be there as soon as we can, I'll talk to you later, Elliot, goodbye." Crash disconnected and whispered under his breath, "God damn it."

"Oi!" Piermont, in his human form, called, sitting down in one of the eight chairs of the kitchen table, "The hell you want?"

After Cheet, Piermont, Cherub, and Alex were seated, Crash began, "Now don't kill me, but we have another mission."

"Son of a..." Piermont groaned, "Are you kidding me?"

"I wish I was, Pierre, but this is serious."

"Just spit it out, Crash," Alex sighed.

"We've been assigned on a mission."

"Obviously," Cheet replied, embittered, "Just tell us what it is."

"Fine! Fine, Jesus...no need to get all pissy. Anyways, it's an Escort mission, nothing terrible."

"Ha! I'm still bringing my weapons and enough clips for a good-sized battle," Alex interrupted, "Trouble always follows us, regardless of what class of mission we have."

"Yeah...that's what you _should _do. Anyways, for details, Elliot was quite vague. He says we're to meet our contact in Venice."

"...Italy?" Piermont asked, suddenly interested.

"Yes."

"What? What the hell is in Italy?" Cheet asked, confused.

"Apparently our target or targets of escort."

"And why are we escorting them?"

"Alliance builder, and concerning their personal mission rises some challenges, they want us to provide backup for them."

"Do we have a name?" Alex asked.

"Yes, 'Ben'."

"Okay..." Piermont replied, "Do we have an address?"

"Yes, an abandoned, dilapidated warehouse along the banks of one of the canal's 'alleys'."

"We need more detail than that, Sarge," Alex added, "There must be more than one old warehouse. The whole damn city is however many hundreds of years old."

"I can't pronounce the address, I just wrote it down, and you can go from there," here, Crash handed them the written address.

"Okay..." Piermont replied, "How will we find this address?"

Crash shrugged, "Ask locals, spot street signs, get a map, I don't care how you do it."

"And how will we get there?"

Here Crash smiled widely, and Piermont was instantly unsettled, "Oh crap, what is it?"

"How fit are you and your girlfriend for flying?"

Piermont's face adopted a tone of displeasure, and he replied, "Well for one, she _ain't_ my girlfriend, she's a dumbass bi-"

Cherub sent him an angry and hurt glance as Alex painfully nudged him in the side.

Piermont smiled mischievously in reply, and continued, "For two, I'm pretty damn sure we're fit enough, but I just don't want to fly."

"Well, you have no choice," Crash replied.

"The hell you mean I 'have no choice'?"

"You don't have a choice, Elliot says that you need to get used to flying the Commander, because you are, after all, a dragon, and it's too late notice to arrange transportation."

"Too late notice?" Cherub replied, "When do we have to be there?"

"By tomorrow morning."

"_What_!" Piermont exclaimed, incredulous, "They want us there _tomorrow_!"

"Yes."

"Are you _freaking _kidding me?" 

"Nope, have fun!"

"Son of a..."

"Hold your tongue, Piermont," Alex replied, "He's right."

Realizing he wasn't going to win, Piermont scowled and asked, "Fine, when do we leave?"

"In an hour, pack up."

As they packed, Piermont asked Alex, "I wonder what this will be like, I'm curious, and, I admit, kind of excited. School gets boring...real fast."

As he always did when he was alone with his rider, Piermont had shed his arrogant facade, revealing his true colors, and, as usual, Alex was pleasantly stunned by Piermont's true kindness and shyness. "I agree," the Commander replied, "But I do like Alliance builders anyways, escorts aren't bad, they're a really good way to make friends as well as see new places. I mean, c'mon, we're freaking going to Venice, Italy! I've never been there, but I've been wanting to."

"And now we can."

"Exactly! I do, however, wonder who our contacts are, and what they're like."

"Maybe they'll be every bit as cool as the Thornberrys?"

"Maybe, Pierre, just maybe."

Suddenly, Cheet entered and said, "About ready? We're leaving in five minutes!"

Piermont, instantly reequipping his false personality, hissed, "Alright pussy cat, shut up, we know. Don't need to remind us every five goddamn seconds."

Alex was, as usual, surprised by just how quickly and fluidly Piermont could change his personality, "Settle down, Pierre," then, to Cheet, the Commander replied, "Thank you, Cheet. We'll be there in a few moments."

The cub nodded and left.

"Well," Alex began, standing up and stretching as he zipped up his backpack and put it on, "Are you ready to go?"

Piermont replied, "Yeah, let's go."

They left their room and met the rest of their little group by the front door. "Alright," Alex began, shoving his way out through the door and outside into the front yard, "Let's go."

"Good luck, Alex, Cheet, Piermont, Cherub. Be careful!" Crash called after them.

"Yeah, yeah," Alex replied, a hint of annoyance in his low voice, "We will, we will."

As the sun peaked at noon, Piermont and Cherub, with Alex and Cheet on their backs, took to the skies and headed northeast, disappearing beyond the distant trees.

Piermont lowered as they flew over the ancient city of Venice. The trip had been long and daunting, having no rest stops, they had been forced to fly over the ocean all night long without so much as a single rest, and the air was freezing. A fine snow drifted down from the heavens as the wind from this altitude blew mercilessly, and Alex felt sorry for his dragon as Piermont was shaking from the bitter cold. "P...please t...tell me we're al...almost there?"

"Yes, land here."

"Thank you!"

Without so much as another word, Piermont landed clumsily among the dilapidated warehouses of the compound. Cherub, equally as cold as Piermont, landed beside the forest dragon, and Cheet hopped down to land beside Alex. "Jesus!" Cheet began, "It's so...damn..._cold_!"

"I know, Cheet. C'mon, we're almost there."

Alex led them towards the warehouse listed on the slip of paper he had received, and as they stood before their destination, it took every ounce of strength to keep from rushing into the old, rundown building. The massive garage door was only wide enough to accommodate Cheet, and Alex if he were pressed flat against his belly. Before they could rush into the shelter, however, Alex spent several minutes observing the area, both gathering details and landmarks, as well as memorizing how everything was, so he could identify and avoid potential dangers just by telling what part, no matter how small, of their environment was different. As he nodded, satisfied from his observation, he turned to his small party and commanded, "Help me with this door."

As they all struggled to open the door, frozen shut, they heard a voice behind them, speaking clear English, ask, "Are you the ones we've been expecting?"

Alarmed, Alex's natural first impulse was to reach for his gun and fire on their guest, but, controlling his reflexes, the Commander and his crew turned to face a small boy, obviously homeless, clothed in a thin, blue robe, yellow sweatpants, and a white undershirt. "I dunno," Piermont replied, "Who are you?"

"Ben."

"Then you must be our contact."

"Follow me, I know an easier way in."

Ben led them to the back of the warehouse and to a small, metal door, set into the wall facing away from the blowing wind, much to the relief of the chilled Terminators. Throwing his weight against the door, Ben finally managed to open the door and led Alex and his team into the cold darkness of the old warehouse.

"Where are we going?" Cheet asked.

"To meet Firedrake and Sorrel."

"Who and who now?"

"My two friends that you are gonna help."

"What exactly do you want of us?" Alex asked.

"I need you to safely escort us to their destination."

"Whose? Firedrake's and Sorrel's?"

"Yes."

"Where are we going?"

"I'll let them tell you," then, cupping his mouth, Ben called into the large building, "Firedrake? Sorrel? They're here!"

The voice of a young man, whom Alex could only relate to as sounding similar to Elijah Wood emerged from the darkness, confused, Alex turned to Ben, "Who's that?"

"Firedrake."

As the Terminators rounded a corner of crates, they spotted a small, young dragon laying down, eyes trained on them. He was barely larger than Piermont, with gray scales, and stunning blue eyes. Beside the dull-gray dragon was a gold-colored cat, whose skeptical, green, catlike eyes glanced at the small group with doubt and heavy resentment. "Sit down," the dragon-Firedrake-commanded.

Exchanging confused glances, Alex and his small crew did as they were told.

"So _this _is your grand army meant to lead you to the _Rim of Heaven_, huh?" came a voice, eerily resembling Whoopi Goldberg, from the small cat-like creature.

"Another talking cat?" Cheet asked, laughing.

"_Excuse _me! I am _NOT _a cat! I am a Brownie!"

"A what?"

Suddenly, Alex said, "A Brownie is a creature from English and Scottish lore described as a small, usually human-like, friendly household spirit, much like an elf, with fur colored in varying shades of brown...usually."

Piermont turned to his rider, incredulous, and replied, "How in the bloody hell do _you _know that?"

Nonchalantly, Alex replied, "The vast majority of my military is composed of mythical creatures, I figured it'd be best to do a little research on some examples in the case a few straddled along."

"Why?"

"For one, to decide whether said creature is friend or foe, and two, out of respect to know much about a usually unknown creature..."

"Such as a Brownie?" Cheet finished, humor lacing his voice.

"Y...yes, such as a Brownie," Alex replied with a nod.

Sorrel let loose a low growl, and Cheet countered by a growl and hiss of his own.

"Alright! Alright! Don't need to start something, cheetah," the arrogant Brownie replied.

"Name's Cheet."

"Whatever."

"_Anyways_, what is is you want us to do, Firedrake?" Alex asked.

"I need you to lead us to the legendary _Rim of Heaven_, located in the...oh what were they called again?"

"The Himalayas," Ben replied.

"Right, the Himalayas."

Raising an eyebrow, Alex queried, "The Himalayan Mountains?"

"Aye."

"Those are...in Asia...right?"

"Yes," Ben replied.

"Across the world?"

"Yes."

"Bloody hell..."

"It shouldn't be hard, at least, I don't think it would be..."

"It'll take a few days."

"What do you suggest we do, Alex?" Cherub asked.

"I suggest we rest today, then we set out tomorrow night. Pending we straight-shot it, which I fully intend to do, we can get there within one day of continuous flying."

"Going easy?" Piermont smirked.

"Why not?" Alex asked, "I don't want to spend two months traveling a distance I surpassed on dragonback overnight. Besides, there is another reason why I want to get to the Himalayas."

"What?" Firedrake asked.

"Well...I didn't bring it up with my squad, because I didn't think it really mattered, but there have been rumors of an LKA base hidden within an ancient monastery built into the mountains."

"An LKA base?" Cheet asked, "This far away from the Terminators?"

"Why not?" Alex asked, "The Terminator Militia is well on its way to becoming a worldwide army. We have loyalists and sympathizers all over this damn planet. Where there's Terminators, there's LKA."

"So at the same time we're building our alliance and escorting these kind fellows to their destination, we have an ulterior motive...a sub-mission to take down and destroy an LKA base."

"Precisely."

"Works for me, perhaps I can improve on my skills some more."

"Pfft," Piermont interrupted, "You don't really need to improve, Cheet, you are already our best fighter, I don't think you really need to worry about that."

"Wow, a compliment from Piermont? I feel special."

"Don't get cocky, kid. I can _still _kick your ass."

"Settle down you two," Alex sighed, "Let's just rest easy. It will be a busy few days for us."

The escort mission went by without problems, much to the relief of the group, the Alpha Company party specifically. They could not recall a mission that went by so smoothly without trouble, as trouble was notorious for following them wherever they went, no matter how innocent the adventure. As they emerged over the peaks of the mountains, revealing the beautiful valley, even the bone-chill winds were unfelt. "Holy hell..." Cheet began, his voice full of wonder, "It's so beautiful."

"Yes it is," Alex said, equally awestruck.

"So this is the _Rim of Heaven_, huh?" Piermont asked Firedrake, who flew beside him.

"Apparently so."

"It's _beuatiful_!" Cherub replied astounded, "I have never seen something so beautiful before!"

The valley was lush, green, with a massive lake in the heart of the valley. The temperature was noticeably warmer within this comfortable paradise, maintaining just above sixty degrees Fahrenheit.

"Yes it is, _Captain Obvious_," Piermont snapped at the field dragon girl, however, his normally malice-tinted voice seemed less sinister and more friendly teasing than anything. It was obvious that the sheer beauty of the valley affected everyone and everything, even the pair's tedious relationship. It was difficult to even be angry in this paradise. Piermont was alarmed to discover that he, for the first time in his life, wondered what it would be like to mate with Cherub here. Alarmed and disgusted that he would even think of mating with her, he shook his head in an attempt to shake away the thoughts, jostling his rider about in the process and bringing on protests from the Commander, "Sorry," he said.

However quickly Piermont turned away those thoughts, Alex, through the special, fatal bond he shared with his dragon, caught on, and saw and felt just how sexually aroused Piermont had become since they had arrived. He was embarrased, having never felt such strong attractions before, and ignored them, pleased when his own arousal diminished into nothingness as his sexually immature body converted his dragon's arousal into innocent, extreme happiness.

Cherub, as if feeling these sexual emotions as well, sent Piermont a glance that Alex had never seen her wear before, one that seemed to display a deep love...and a deep lust...for him. Confused that she would even consider taking Piermont as her mate, considering all he had done to her, Alex passed it off as a form of Stockholm syndrome...but he still had his doubts. He then noticed how Piermont stole a discreet glance at Cherub and how his eyes, secretly trained on the female, slowly trailed down her body, eventually resting on her lower abdomen where the extent of her sexual arousal was very clear. Alex was horrified by Piermont's actions, and the increase in the tension of the forest dragon male's loins...and the consequential increase in his own, told him that his dragon was also feeling what could very easily be considered love or lust for the girl. Still confused, Alex chose to ignore these odd behaviors, instead concentrating on locating this supposed monastery-turned-LKA-base.

Piermont, realizing that he was threatening to fall out and reveal himself, quickly but unhappily pulled his gaze away from her. As he glanced forward, he caught Cherub staring at his lower abdomen as well, and he felt a brief spike in his loins, informing him that reveal was inevitable. However, he said nothing, didn't even address it, and he smiled at the thought of Cherub seeing him, fully revealed, perhaps longing to touch and taste what would never be hers. Then his smiled vanished as he realized that they were among a group, not alone, and both his closest friends as well as complete strangers would know his intentions if he did fall out. Sure he could _try_ to pass it off as him about to relieve himself, but when he did fall out to relieve himself, he wasn't hard...and judging by the way his muscles around there ached and stiffened, feelings only experienced when he was about to pleasure himself, he knew that his erection would undoubtedly inform them of what was racing through his testosterone-flooded mind.

As the dragons landed on the banks of the lake, their riders dismounted, and Cheet walked up to Alex, scaling the Commander's back and wrapping his small, warm, furry mass around Alex's neck, his usual perch whenever he travelled with his leader. They paused by the banks of the lake, struck by the sheer beauty of the world. Without realizing it, Alex glanced over at Piermont, where both him and Cherub were unsually close to each other, and seemed to be staring at each other dreamily...even lovingly.

_Something tells me that they really want to mate, _Cheet thought at Alex, his small but strong mental voice startling the unsuspecting Commander.

_What makes you think so? _Alex replied, an amused tone in his mental voice displaying how humorous he found it that he was not the only one noticing the dragons' attraction to each other.

_Well...the way they are looking at each other...how abnormally close they are and how they don't seem to hate each other at the moment..._

_True, true..._

_And there is also...the more...physical...aspects_.

_Namely?_

_Well, even from here, I can see Cherub's...areas...glistening wet, and I highly doubt that it's water. And, of course, Piermont has revealed himself, despite his attempts to hide it, it's quite hard to hide an erection._

Alex let out a genuine laugh., bringing on confused glances from the strangers in their party, the ones who didn't know about the Terminator's mutual mental bank, and the conversation going on between the Commander and his current protege.

_And, I'm sure you can feel their arousal and pleasure. You are bonded with Piermont, after all. I'm not bonded with either of them, and even _I _could feel their lust, radiating off of them like heat from a fire. If a stranger, like myself, could feel just how horny they were, I'm sure the bonded rider of one of them could feel it as well, and probably more powerful than myself. If you _do _feel it more powerful, I feel sorry for you, because it's...pretty powerfully felt right now, I'm horny as hell, too young to feel it, and it hurts more than anything, but I feel it strongly, so you, feeling every single thought, amplified by your bond, must feel it even stronger. Strangely, I find it odd that you don't seem affected._

_I do feel it strongly...and I am affected by it...I...just have thick, black dress slacks to hide it._

Alex then noticed Cheet was glancing down at his waist, "C'mon Cheet, really?"

The cub let loose a loud howl of laughter.

"You goddamn pervert."

This only made the cub laugh even harder, and as he adjusted his position on Alex's shoulders, the Commander could feel a small, hard, throbbing object poking into his neck as he felt something warm and wet splash between his shoulder blades and slide down his back. Viciously, Alex shook his head, and the cub tumbled off with a loud, "_Waah!_"

His razor-sharp claws reached for a grip, and Alex hissed as he felt sharp heat slice down his back from his right shoulder, diagonally down to his left thigh. Cheet landed with a loud, dull thud, upside down on his head, on the ground, tail flicking angrily as he struggled to right himself, paws moving as if pawing the air.

"_Ack! _Let me up, dammit! _Argh!_" his small form swaying, Cheet let loose another "_Waah! Oof!_" as he landed clumsily on his belly, limbs splayed out before him. Firedrake, Sorrel, and Ben glared at them as if they were insane.

Alex, hissing as he healed the cuts along his back, felt the back of his neck, glancing at his slick and shining hand with a look of pure disgust.

"Ow! The hell was _that _for!" Cheet protested, standing as he shook himself, shaking the mud and leaves off of his golden, spotted, ruffled fur.

"You bastard! You freaking came on me!"

"Hey! It wasn't _my _fault! It's your damn _dragon_!"

"You're lucky it was just that, or else I would freaking neuter you."

"So..." Cheet began, smiling sheepishly as he sat up on his haunches, "I take it no more rides? Also...I never noticed it, but jizz kinda looks like warmed glaze for donuts."

"At _l__east _not when any of the members of our team are horny, and screw you."

"Deal, I guess..." and Cheet's sheepish smile became a mischievous one as he watched Alex walk away, swearing as he tried to wipe the cub's semen off of his neck.

"_Ahem_," Sorrel uttered, attracting the attention of the disgusted Alex, the sheepish Cheet, the two, aroused dragons, and Firedrake and Ben, who had been staring at the cub and the Commander, "If I may interrupt this program...what now?"

"I say we just rest up for the rest of the night, and maybe for a couple of more days, just so we can recoup from our journey," Cheet said, stepping forward as he stretched and yawned.

"I agree," Alex replied, scrubbing his neck with a moist pad.

"Oh c'mon now, Alex, it's sterile!" Cheet replied with a grin.

"Still disgusting."

Suddenly, Cherub let loose a loud laugh, and as Alex and Cheet rushed to where she stood, breathing hard as she continued to laugh like a loon, they noticed a furious-looking Piermont, thoroughly embarrassed.

"What happened?" Alex asked.

Cherub, struggling to speak in between laughs, replied, "See for yourself!"

They did, and they also began to break out in wild laughter once they realized that Piermont had apparently, accidentally climaxed without realizing it, and Cherub had watched everything unfold.

"It's not funny!" Piermont hissed, "It's embarrassing!"

"It's freaking hillarious, man!" Alex exclaimed, laughing even harder. Piermont looked down at the shining puddle between his feet, humiliated.

Cheet, approaching, said, "And that ain't the immature, spermless seminal fluid you experienced, Alex. That's fully developed and matured."

This only made Cherub and the Commander laugh harder.

Sorrel, disgusted, replied, "You guys are so immature!" then, to Firedrake and Ben, who also were struggling not to laugh, "Why did we hire them again?"

"As immature as they may be, Sorrel, they are still trusted soldiers, and they _will _protect us."

"As this rate, I have my doubts."

"Trust me, Sorrel, in the end, you'll see what I mean."

"I hope so."

The next day, Alex mounted Piermont, and the pair took to the skies to fly over the valley, searching and scouting out for the supposed enemy base. They had little detail as to where it could possibly be, how many were stationed there, and why it was here of all places. The only knowledge they had available to rely on were rumors that it was here, somewhere. However, sometimes rumors are just that, and the base could very easily be nonexistent. At this point, Alex wasn't sure, but he didn't want to take any chances.

In his campaign to annihilate the LKA, sustaining life even though their leader had long since met his fate, Alex had to destroy all potential establishments the LKA held, no matter how small. He knew he couldn't kill every single member, the army was too vast to kill off...much like the Terminator Militia...so his only hope was to kill off enough of their numbers, rendering fear into their forces, and ultimately causing them to disband and surrender, thus ending the Terminator/LKA war. The main problem at the moment, however, was that the LKA had taken into hiding, cowering in fear of the Terminator Militia and stalling as they awaited the rebuilding of their force, and the election of a new leader.

Alex had to eliminate them before they got the chance, he knew that if they did, he was done for. To assassinate the elusive General 'No-Tongue' had cost the lives of one of Alex's most prized soldiers, and one of his best friends. He couldn't take another loss. Every death struck him hard; the militia, Alpha Company in particular, was his family, his brethren. Every member was basically of his blood, to lose a soldier was like losing a beloved brother, and he had lost two of Alpha Company, the invincible Mutant Division of the Terminator Militia, so far. Perhaps he should label Alpha Company soldiers as 'MIA' if they died in battle, instead of the standard 'KIA'. Many of the lower companies and Terminator sympathizers looked up to Alpha Company, to know that one of the supposedly invincible leaders had died in battle would greatly effect overall morale and loyalty, and Alex could not handle mutinous turncoats like Jazz.

So, while the rest of their small party slept off the accumulated exhaustion from their continuous flight to this beautiful destination, Alex and his dragon flew on in the dark, early-morning silence, scouring the mountains and foothills for any hints as to the whereabouts of the base, or cold, hard proof of its existence.

"Hey, Alex?"

"Yes, Pierre?"

"Can I...ask you about something?"

"Sure, what's up?"

For awhile, Piermont remained silent, and Alex waited patiently, knowing that Piermont was about to discuss a very personal and sensitive topic. He only acted so hesitant when the topic he wanted to discuss was considered a deep secret.

After several minutes, Piermont began, "I...need to ask your opinion on something."

"Sure."

"I...eh..." Piermont thought for a few moments before continuing, "Since we arrived here, I've...been thinking a lot about...eh..."

"Cherub?"

Piermont sucked in his breath, as if about to send out a harsh reply, however, he only released his breath and slowly nodded, "Yes, about her."

"What about her?"

"I...I don't know. Ever since we came here though, I've been thinking about her...differently."

"Differently?"

"Aye."

"How so?"

Piermont winced, as if not wanting to blatantly admit the truth, hoping that Alex understood his cryptic messages. However, one glance back told the dragon that Alex knew very well what was on his mind (and Piermont thanked their bond), but Alex, as an attempt to lure the dragon into accepting the truth, wanted Piermont to tell him the blatant truth.

"I...I..."

Alex waited and listened patiently, with a blank expression the dragon could not read.

Finally, with a heavy sighed, Piermont muttered something.

"Pardon?" Alex asked.

Piermont, sighing again, spoke up and enunciated his words, "I think I...I think I love her..."

A slight raise of the eyebrows is the only reaction Alex had to Piermont's news. "Really now?"

"Aye..." his voice seemed unhappy, "I don't know how or why..."

"Simple," Alex replied, "You are reaching the age of sexual maturity, the point where most dragons choose their mates, the fact that she is someone you've known for awhile, albeit tortured relentlessly, has generally drawn you to her as the most qualified choice for your potential partner. You know her, she knows you, and, if I do say so myself, she really is a beautiful dragon. I'm actually happy at your decision, I've noticed that _her _opinion towards _you _as changed as well."

"I just feel so bad for everything I have ever done to her...I just want to make it up to her..."

"Mmm hmm."

"And I...I just want to be hers...and for her to be mine...to love her. I want her to know me, the _re__al _me, not that piss-poor charade. I want her to want me as much as I want her...and...I want to be her mate."

"Okay, I don't mind you and her being together, but at least save the mating until _I _reach sexual maturity. Remember, we're sharing emotions and feelings. I am pretty damn sure I will feel your mating passions, and considering your little excitement last night nearly crippled me, to feel you and her actually mating will probably kill me. When a dragon mates with another, the rider or riders feel the combined passions of both dragons, not just one. I barely survived your solo release, to add Cherub in the mix...especially since females tend to have more powerful ends..." Alex shook his head, "Especially since I've heard that the Dragonian climax is immensely powerful, one hundred times more than that of the human's. That would kill me, unless I was mature enough to derive intense pleasure in the act...but I'm not. Court her however you will, but leave off the mating until after I tell you that _I _am ready for your union. _Comprende_?"

"Aye..." Piermont sighed, disappointment heavy in his voice.

"Good."

They rode on in silence for a little while longer before Alex pointed, "Oi! Get me closer to that plateau."

Piermont silently lowered, and Alex, night vision activated, hidden by the shadows of the mountains and the moonless night, could see soldiers sporting the usual attire of the LKA, outfitted for subfreezing temperatures, patrolling the compound.

_It looks to me_, Alex thought at his dragon, _That we found our elusive LKA base...what do you think_?

_I think it's time we return to camp and inform the others, then get an invasion party prepared_, Piermont replied.

_I agree fully, c'mon, let's go_.

Piermont performed a hairpin curve and dashed backwards, heading to the cave where their group had camped for the night.

Alex briefed his troops on everything he had found out about the base. That previous night, after informing the rest of Alpha Company of the base's location, Alex and Piermont had returned to the monastery, camping out on a rocky outcropping overlooking the base as they spied on the actions of the guards. Once dawn had broken and the guards had swapped shifts, Alex and his dragon had emerged from their hiding place to return to their camp, and were already making a battle plan as they arrived.

"...So when do you intend to begin our attack?" Cheet asked his mentor.

"Tonight, while the guard changes shifts."

"Should I contact the others?"

Alex shook his head, "No, not enough time. It's a small base, we should be able to take it with ease."

"Despite however many hundreds of troops they have?"

"Yes, but they don't have dragons or mutants, don't worry, we'll do fine."

"Okay," Cheet replied, "How do you propose we attack?"

"Strike from the skies. We didn't see any anti-aircraft, and only a couple of pieces of anti-artillery and anti-armor."

"So just move in on dragonback?"

"Precisely, they don't expect us to be here. If we attack on dragonback _en masse_, we can annihilate them and destroy their base with little to no resistance."

"Sounds straightforward enough. Simple, yet effective...I'm likin' it, Commander."

"Thanks, Cheet. What do you guys think?"

Cherub replied, "I like it. We supplement our lack of numbers for an effective surprise attack with dominant powers and strengths, our attacking forces supreme to theirs in the fact that we have supremacy in their weakest area."

"Cherub, can you and Piermont _work_ together without fighting?"

Piermont sent the Commander a sinister glance as Cherub nodded approvingly, "I'm sure we can cooperate, can't we, Piermont?"

Feigning a smile to hide his annoyance at the Commander's close admission to his secret, Piermont replied, "Indeed we can, Cherub. You and I can attack from above after we drop them off on the ground."

Alex thought to Piermont, _There, now you can become acquainted with her and befriend her while we're on the ground. I just set you up on the first steps to winning her heart, you are welcome._

_Yeah, yeah_, Piermont thought, rolling his eyes, _Thank you, thank you._

"Firedrake, Sorrel, Ben, do you guys think you can aide us here, just this once?" Alex asked.

Firedrake nodded, "Sure, you did help us get here after all, we'll be more than happy to help you defend it."

"Then it's settled then," Piermont finished, "We rest today and strike tonight."

_-__**That Night...**_-

**-**_**18**__**58**__**Hours**_-

The dragons, riders mounted and ready for battle, took to the skies, spreading their wings to their full span as they caught the warm updraft and were silently lifted to the clouds. Several hundred feet above the monastery, the updraft dissipated, and they rode the still skies, gliding in silence as they scanned the layout of the ruined, dilapidated complex, trying to remember everything in the event they needed a quick evacuation route, or to find reliable cover. Once satisfied with their preliminary scan, all eyes turned on Alex, and with a single nod, the dragons bellowed a guttural roar, all in unison, as they dove straight down, opened their muzzles, and spewed fire on the largest of the buildings.

In between breaths of flame, Piermont called to his rider, "These bastards have been here awhile, and they're made of thick stone, they _will _burn, but it will be hard and will take awhile to ignite them, we'll try the best we can."

"Okay," Alex called, "Just continue the attack!"

Piermont answered with another intimidating bellow as he once more spewed flame down on the ground.

"Oi!" the Commander called to the other riders, "We're approaching our drop-off point! Get ready!" They nodded, and as the Commander cried, "_NOW!_" the riders leaped off their dragons, hitting the ground with a somersault as they grabbed their weapons and charged into the startled mass. They were quick to eliminate the troops, and as they rushed into the buildings, taking down the troops that could not be wiped out by dragonflame, the dragons announced a victorious roar as they succeeded in destroying all forces who had been outside and the recently-deployed artillery and armor that their opponents had dispatched.

Suddenly, Piermont's mental voice stormed the minds of the riders, filled with joy, bloodlust, and victory, _It's up to you now, we've done all we can out here. Better be quick, don't keep us waiting, we'll be by the fountain_.

The battle, if it could be called so, lasted only for another hour. The riders scanned the perimeter, searching for any survivors. After ensuring themselves that there wasn't any opposition remaining, they returned to their waiting dragons. "Cheet?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, Commander?"

"Call Elliot, tell him to send out a platoon of soldiers to militarize this region. We can take this base as our headquarters, and there are a number of spots throughout the valley, ideal for establishing an artillery battery or two, or a few AA turrets."

"Yes, sir," Cheet then left as he made his call.

"Commander?"

Alex turned to Firedrake, who had spoken, "Yes?"

"Is it possible...we could join up?"

"Of course, would you like to lead our troops here?"

Ben nodded abruptly, "That would be so cool!"

"Hey, hey, hold on a minute...I don't want to join some army!" Sorrel interrupted, voice embittered.

"Settle down, Sorrel, we'll be fine."

"Says you, Firedrake, I highly doubt all battles will be as easy as this one."

Alex then replied, "Odds are, you will see few, if any, battles. Believe it or not, the _Rim of the Heaven_ is not necessarily a prime piece of real estate for soldiers, both friendly and enemy alike. If anything, this will be treated as a...well...retreat...for Terminator troops to relax. We will have a platoon here, true, however, it's more a 'better safe than sorry' issue than actually establishing a fortress."

"Well..." Sorrel began, "I didn't understand a word you said...but it sounds acceptable, I guess..."

"Good, you can still stay with them, and you will remain here."

Cheet returned, closing the flip phone and saying, "Elliot says he'll have a 1500 man platoon out here, complete with armor, artillery, and aircraft, by the day after tomorrow."

"Really?" Alex replied incredulous, "Damn! Talk about efficient."

"Yeah, he's also sending a variety of construction materials."

"What? I..."

"Don't worry, he's only going to restore the monastery, excavate a fortress, some barracks, and some storage space in the mountains, and he's going to construct an airfield, a small training field, and an artillery/anti-armor/anti-aircraft battery connected by trenches. He's not gonna build an urban metropolis, just some defense systems if we're attacked."

"Good," turning to Firedrake, Sorrel, and Ben, Alex said with a sigh, "Our work here is done, it is time we go."

After goodbyes were said, Alex, Cheet, Piermont, and Cherub took to the skies. With a final, farewell roar and jet of flame, the dragons flew away towards the east, Firedrake, Sorrel, and Ben watching their departure from the plateau that housed the monastery.


	7. Chapter VII: The Minecrawler Crisis

_**Chapter VII**_**:**

**-''The Minecrawler Crisis''-**

**-Champaign, Illinois-**

**-_17 June 2003_-**

**-_0814 Hours_-**

"So, tell me again where we're going?" Cheet asked Alex as he watched the Commander wipe sweat off of his face.

The winter months had long-since passed, and for an unknown reason, Alex had awakened his squad early one morning, forcing the entirety of Alpha Company out of bed, and had dragged them on the road. Now, they were parked in a _Krispy Kreme_ donut shop's parking lot, feasting on several boxes of donuts.

"You'll see," Alex replied with a mouthful of donut, "You'll see..."

"Yeah, we're not really ones for surprises, Commander," Crash replied, "Also, it's hot as hell for being 8 AM, and I'm curious as to why you dragged us onto the road on the hottest day of the entire damn year."

"Ha!" Kovu replied, "You think _this _is the hottest day of the whole year? Just wait till August."

"True," Simba agreed, the lion was lounging beside Nala on the bed of their truck, bathing himself in the sun, "But it's still pretty damn hot right now."

"If I tell you, it wouldn't be a surprise now would it?"

"But we hate surprises," Kiara replied, she, too, was lounging on the bed of the truck, sunning with Kovu by her side.

"Hehe, well, sorry."

"It's a mission...ain't it?" Piermont asked.

Beside him, Cherub groaned

"It's a secret."

"Yep, it's a mission," Cherub scoffed.

"Now, c'mon guys! It's been awhile since we've had a mission..." Cheet replied, stepping forward to defend the Commander, "I'm sure it won't be terrible...if it _is _a mission..."

"Oh! So he hasn't told you either?" Piermont muttered, he was in his human form, and his usual black jeans, black, leather boots, white undershirt, and leather jacket attire had been replaced with a pair of black, silk shorts, sandals, and a plain white t-shirt. "I can't get anything on him."

"Not even while digging through his mind?" Simba asked.

"Nope, not even while diggin' through his mind."

"Jesus, why are you guys so eager to find out where we're going?" Alex mused.

"So we can decide whether or not we should turn and run like hell, although I do thank you for the donuts," Piermont replied, bringing on chuckles from the other members.

"You'll find out soon, we're supposed to meet our contact any time now."

"Goddammit!" Cheet hissed, "I just freaking knew it...a mission."

"Really? A meeting...in a _Krispy Kreme_ parking lot?" Piermont remarked.

"Precisely," the Commander replied.

"Oi...son of a bitch..." Cheet sighed.

"Hey, no need for the language, man. It won't be _that _bad," Alex countered.

"Bull," Piermont replied, "Things are always '_that _bad' when we're involved."

"Well that mission to the _Rim of the Heaven _pulled off without a hitch."

"Yeah, and you got jizzed on by Cheet in the process."

Cheet hissed, "Hey! Screw you, Pierre! It was your goddamn fault that I did. If you wouldn't have got the mind set to bone Che-"

"First things first," Piermont interrupted, "Shut the hell up and stay the hell out of things you ain't involved in...and second, I'd like to see you try, pussy cat."

Cheet hissed at him.

"Oh, I'm _so _scared of _wittle pussy cat_."

"Shut up, both of you," Alex replied, annoyed.

"Yes, sir," Cheet sighed.

Emphasizing a sigh, Piermont replied, "Yes, ma'am," and he snickered.

Alex countered by throwing Crash's cup of coffee at him. The empty cup bounced off the human-form-dragon's head, and Piermont tightened his lips shut, biting back his reply.

"Are we finished?" Alex asked.

"Yes," Cheet replied.

"No..." Crash replied, looking at his empty hand, "Cause now I need another damn cup of coffee..."

Ignoring him, Cheet asked, "So where's this goddamn contact at?"

"He should be coming..."

Suddenly, their attention was diverted as an old, dilapidated station wagon pulled into the parking lot, parking beside the massive, flat-bed, 1989, Ford 250 diesel truck that had brought the Terminators of Alpha Company. The door of the station wagon opened, and a tall, skinny, pale man with small muscles, bluish-gray hair, and brown eyes stepped out. The man was wearing the attire of a janitor, and as he approached Alex, he asked, "Are you the Terminators?"

"Aye, that we are," Alex replied, and the rest of his troops nodded in unison.

"Kurt Hectic, here...much as I don't want to be...for Fluke Hawkins."

"He couldn't come himself?"

Kurt scoffed, "I'm actually laughing at that remark, but to answer your question, no. The doc is...eccentric and anti-social...to say the _very _least. He self-exiled himself a few years ago, and he refuses to return until he can find some demeaning form of evidence for something, I don't know...I don't dabble with the doc's research anymore."

Eyebrows raised, Alex replied, "O...kay?"

"Anyways, if you want to see the doc, you gotta follow me, it will be an...interesting...experience."

"Ah _hell_! I _don't _like the sound of _that_," Piermont moaned.

"Stop your bitching, Pierre," Alex replied. To Kurt, he said, "Let's go."

-**Outside of Champaign, Illinois-**

**-**_**0**__**823 Hours**_-

"What the _hell _is _this_!" Alex asked, incredulous.

They stood just outside of a strange, lunar lander-style vehicle, and Kurt was approaching it, opening the air-lock with the press of a button. There came the strange screech of hydraulics, followed by the hiss of escaping air as the large door opened upwards, and Kurt disappeared within the darkness of the shuttle. "Come in," Kurt's voice replied, "Please hurry, the doctor doesn't like late meetings, even though he is late himself most of the time."

Exchanging unsure glances, Alex and Cheet entered, followed by the rest of Alpha Company. The shuttle was much larger than it seemed, it had a diameter of fifteen feet, but despite this, the Terminators barely managed to squeeze inside the shuttle. Kurt, in an attempt to alleviate the stress of close quarters, said, "Don't worry, the trip will be fairly short."

"Approximately how short?" Cheet asked, struggling to breathe as his claustrophobia kicked in.

"About twenty-five to thirty minutes."

"Yeah...I'll...um...try to last that long."

The air-lock closed, its loud _bang _startling Cheet, who was already edging towards panic. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the shuttle engines started, and the lander took off.

Alpha Company looked outside the windows as the lander rose higher and higher into the air, finally piercing the cloud cover as it entered the stratosphere. Still it rose higher, and soon, they were within the infinite void of space. As the shuttle's direction changed, Alex saw an immense, horse-shaped, red space station orbiting the planet. "Hot _damn_!" Piermont replied, "Look at the size of _that_!"

"The _Jim Dandy_," Kurt said, "The doctor's ship."

"Jesus Christ! How _big _is that _thing_!"

"Approximately the same dimensions as the Earth's moon."

"Need I ask why?" Alex asked.

"You can, but I don't have an answer for you."

"Why is it shaped like a horse?" Cheet asked, overcoming his claustrophobia long enough to gawk at the eerie, quickly-approaching station.

"It's...not a horse..." Kurt replied.

"Then...what in the bloody hell is it?"

"It's a...uh...a dog."

"...A dog? Seriously?"

"Yeah..."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"Nope."

Cheet laughed, "Wow, and I thought _we _were crazy!"

"Like I said, the doctor is a bit of an eccentric."

"A bit, huh? Dude, that's more than a 'bit'."

"I know, but he's my boss, I'm only a janitor, I have no say in any of his decisions...or at least...none that are relevant."

"Talk about extreme isolationism," Sonic stated, and everyone laughed.

"Ask him about 'extreme isolationism'," Kurt began with a shake of his head, "He'll go rambling on for hours."

"I take it you know from experience?"

"Exactly," he said this like, 'Egg-zachly', emphasizing the first syllable with a slight raise in the pitch of his voice and an extended enunciation.

"Oh, lovely,"Alex replied, "We're walking into the mansion of a madman, a true, blue, mad scientist."

"A mad scientist who programmed his ship's computer to be like HAL-9000."

"Son of a _bitch_!" Piermont moaned, "I had a bad feeling to begin with...the fact that the ship's computer is programmed to be like the infamous, homicidal, dick of a computer from _2001: A Space Odyssey _only makes things much worse."

"Yeah...a personality and comments similar to HAL-9000, but with a deeper, more layered voice."

"So a haunted or demonic HAL-9000?"

"Well...a creepier version, yes."

"Is it sentient?"

"Yep. Doc left nothing out, he wanted the _real_ HAL, even managed to give the screen of the bridge monitor-which is also one of the fifteen mainframe databases for the computer-the iconic HAL-9000 camera eye."

"For the love of..." Piermont sighed, "Stupid, creepy-ass computer robot."

"He's a...huge fan...of the Space Odyssey series."

"Oh, wonderful."

Kurt suddenly spoke into his headset, "Kurt Hectic to Doctor Hawkins, I have the Terminators, requesting permission to dock."

A heavily British-accented voice, fast-pitched, and sounding almost like a shout came from the line, "Kurt? You brought them? Good boy! I'll have Max open the docking bay for you, you know which one."

"Roger," to the Terminators, he said, "Well, you get to meet the third of our little trio."

"Trio?" Alex asked.

"Doc, Max, and myself."

"So...how does the isolation from society impact the doctor? On second thought, how does the isolation impact all three of you?"

"Not much, Doc Hawkins has developed a number of sentient experiments we communicate periodically with. We socialize, just not with _normal _lifeforms."

"Sentient experiments?"

"Yep."

"Any examples?"

"Aside from Computer," here, Kurt chuckled, "Kermit."

"Kermit?"

"Kermit."

Alex gave him a puzzled look. Kurt looked back and said, "Don't worry, I'll introduce you to Kermit. Doc'll show you him anyways on your grand tour."

"So...what exactly does he want us to do?"

"Damned if I know, something about solar energy spikes and alien threats. Like I've already said, I don't listen to his nonsense anymore, that's how I manage to retain my sanity...perhaps the only one on the ship who is still somewhat sane. Doc and I are the only two humans on board, and _I'm _the one who does all the dirty work and communication with the surface."

"How do you get supplies?"

"The ship is entirely self-sustaining."

"Really?"

"Yes. Space-grown vegetables are...unusual...at first, they're kinda chewy, leathery, and a bit bland and tasteless, but you learn to get used to them."

"Any meat?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"The animals all died out. We learned...the hard way...that animals have trouble reproducing in Outer Space, and we exhausted our frozen meat supply a couple of months into our little exile."

"So, I noticed you said you and Doc were the only two humans on board..."

"Correct."

"Well, what about Max?"

"Max isn't a human, he's a dog...a robotic, six-legged dog that Doc constructed to pass the time. He can be temperamental at times, but he's an overall good friend, and someone who's is fun to pass the time with."

"And Kermit?"

"You'll see. I'll give you one hint: _Little Shop of Horrors_."

"What? What in the bloody hell is _Little Shop of Horrors_?"

"Just...don't worry, you'll meet him."

As they entered the hangar of the _Jim Dandy_, Alex asked, "So...how long do you think we'll stay here?"

Kurt shrugged, "Could be a few days, could be a few months, it all depends on what the doc wants from you. Ah, and here's Max to greet us."

"You're late," came a gruff, angry-sounding voice.

"Sorry, Max."

Alex emerged from the darkness of the landing craft, jumping at the site of the robotic dog Max. Max was bipedal with four arms, dingy white fur, a black, raccoon-mask-style coloration on his face, and black ears. He wore an olive drab, bullet-proof vest, and smoked a thick, Cuban cigar. Alex was forced to look up, as Max's six-foot height toward over his four-foot height. "So," the cyborg began, "You are the infamous Commander of the Terminator Militia?"

"Aye," Alex replied.

"I expected someone..."

"Older? Yeah, I get that a lot."

"Anyways, the Doctor is expecting us, follow me."

Max led the group throughout the massive space station, and the Terminator Militia couldn't help but to gawk at everything they saw.

Noticing this, the robotic dog asked, "I take it you guys have never been in space before?"

"Nope," Alex replied.

"Not very fancy, but...eh...suits our needs."

"Pfft, very roomy."

"Perhaps too much so."

"What? How can you have too much room?"

"Three people living on a station roughly the same size as the Earth's moon? Things get lonely after awhile."

"Robots need socialization as well?"

"The doctor developed me with sentience, so yes."

"And Kermit?"

Here Max laughed, "Kermit, a joke of an experiment."

The hangar of the _Jim Dandy _consisted of a metal catwalk floor, and bare, red, steel girders for walls. The hallways and corridors throughout the ship were composed of a navy-blue carpet, dingy white walls, and red chair railing. Upon entering the central hub on the doctor's floor, the catwalk returned, the carpet disappearing. Looking up, Alex could see the exposed ceiling, ventilation shafts, girders, all hidden by pipes from the water lines.

The elevator in the heart of the hub (where the militia had entered through) slowed to a stop, appearing to be a part of the floor instead of an elevator, and they were faced with four blast doors. Green-glowing steps led to a door on their left, white to their right, blue in front of them, and orange from behind.

"What do the colors mean?" Alex asked.

"Green is the lounge," Max began, "White is the lavatory, blue is the bridge, and orange is the doctor's quarters."

At first, Max led them to the doctor's quarters, and after a stretch of hallway, they entered the cozy, roomy lodge. The carpet was orange with a yellow, floral pattern. A corner of the room was sunken in, revealing a viewing area against a massive, wall-sized window that displayed earth and space. In the center of the room, the floor sunk in five feet, revealing a circular seating area beside a fire pit. To their left was the kitchen, modeled after the old 1950s style. In the upper left corner of the room was a bar, and to their right was a massive, flat-screen television, currently displaying static. "He isn't here," Kurt said, reappearing from the kitchen, "Let's check the bridge."

Back in the central hub, they entered the bridge and spotted the doctor, standing at his post, chatting with the computer.

"Holy hell!" Cheet exclaimed, "He's like, the epitome of a mad scientist!"

And he truly looked the part, with crazy, Albert Einstein-white hair, he was small and hunched over, clothed in a lab coat and yellow gloves. "Doctor?" Max asked.

Hawkins jumped, turning abruptly to face the dog. Alex was slightly disturbed by the appearance of the main screen...dominated by a satirical version of the iconic HAL9000 eye. "Oh, Kurt!" he began, "So good to see you, my boy! Ah! And you brought them along as well!"

"Hi?" Alex asked. The hyperactive doctor ran to him and abruptly shook his hand.

"So good to finally meet you, Commander! However, I did expect you to be a tad bit older."

"Yeah...I get that a lot."

"Good! Good, very well then."

Suddenly, a Klaxon sounded, and the computer, speaking in an eerie voice said, "Minecrawler in Sector 8675309."

Hawkins replied, "530...Good gravy! That's Edmonton!"

"Wait, what? What the hell is going on?" Alex asked.

"Well Kurt, I hope you're up to saving the world one more time, yes?"

"You sure are quick to send _me _down!"

"Max and I will help when we can, but for now it's up to you! Jinkies, I'm so proud!"

By this point in time, Kurt had been forcefully handed a strange suit by the doctor, and he was running off, presumably to the hangar.

"What the hell?" Cheet asked, and Alex shrugged.

Peering outside, Piermont gasped as he saw something, "What the...what in the hell is _that_!"

The others ran up to him, and they saw as a massive, square-shaped object crawled across the surface of the earth, leaving a trail of flattened, destroyed land in its wake. The most frightening thing, was that it was visible from space.

"That," the doctor began, "Is a City Minecrawler, an alien weapon designed to strip the Earth of all mineral resources. We had to battle them a few years ago...and we were lucky to keep them from the media...though it was quite difficult."

"So...what do we do?"

Kurt has to ride the energy stream down to Earth, enter the Minecrawler from the top, and fight his way to the pilot. Upon killing the pilot, the indestructible Minecrawler will go into self-destruct mode, and the energy stream will whisk it away back to the alien home world.

"Which is...where?"

"I don't know."

"...Okay?"

"Do not worry! He'll be back within an hour. Then we can get on with our tour."

"Why not tour now?"

"Oh no, no, no! I must keep tabs on Kurt! There are many a mess that needs cleaning, and I can't do it without him."

Cheet sent an amused glance at Alex, who struggled to stifle a laugh. So...what do we do then?" Piermont asked.

"We just sit here and wait."

"Wait for what?"

"Whenever Kurt needs to return, of course!"

"Lovely..." the dragon groaned.

"Doc..pilot...gone," came a voice over the radio.

The doctor, who had been dozing, suddenly shot up and ran to the radio.

"...at now?"

"Kurt? Eh what? Turn your thingie up! I'm not getting a clear signal, my boy, speak from the diaphragm!"

"Doc...?"

Suddenly, there came a beeping sound from the computer, and the doctor continued, "I don't want to alarm you, but there is something very big behind you! It looks very suspicious!"

"What? I can't...you..."

"Kurt! Kurt listen to me! I want you to lie down, take a break, relax."

"Doc? I..."

Then radio silence.

"Kurt?"

Silence.

"Kurt!"

"Doctor?" Max began, approaching the doctor, 'We're not getting through to him."

"Oh nonsense! He's always been quite reasonable, something is just blocking the signal!" the doctor looked outside at a strange orbiting ship, then, he said, "It's that ship!"

"Hmm..." Max began, "We could take out their power supply so they stop jamming us."

"Oh no, no, no! I've got a better plan, _you _should take out their power supply so they stop jamming us!"

Max growled.

"Heel! Good doggie! Now go straddle a torpedo while I figure out how to aim! I _love _surplus!"

"Eh..." the Commander began, "What shall we do?"

The doctor then, after some consideration, said, "Why don't you go along with Max? Wait! No...you are too large to fit into the torpedo, there is only room for one, you know. Hm...I know! Why don't you send that little...orange, cat, thing of yours with Max?"

"Me?" Cheet asked.

"Yes, you should be able to do well...how is your fighting style?"

"I'm...eh...melee...I can't wield weapons."

"That's all right, those aliens _should _be rather weak," then, on the radio, the doctor said, "Max, don't go yet, I'm sending a partner with you."

The doctor then furiously began typing at the console, and Cheet was surrounded in a yellow haze. "What the fu-?" he began before he vanished.

Alex, drawing his weapon, hissed, "Where did you send him?"

"No need to get cranky, he's with Max."

Hesitantly, Alex lowered his weapon as the doctor turned back to the console. With a few more careful keystrokes, Alex and the others watched as a glowing red object fired from the ship, heading into an asteroid belt towards the orbiter.

"If Cheet is harmed, it will be _your _head, doctor," Alex said, his voice layered with malice.

"Don't worry, he should do fine."

-_**Meanwhile...**_-

Cheet was vaguely aware of the vibrations as the torpedo sped on, he was a nervous wreck, and when he heard the muffled sound of breaking glass, he knew he had entered the ship. Suddenly, Max kicked open the door, sat up, and opened fire. Cheet gathered the courage to peek out and watched as the dog massacred the many, tiny, fleeing, frightened, green, cone-headed aliens.

Suddenly, the torpedo crashed into the wall ahead, and both flew out, Max's matrix-style backflip much more graceful and epic than the cub's clumsy barrel roll. Bearings gathered, Max revealed four Uzis and charged forward, firing through the wall and heading deeper into the ship. They were met with small, rolling, exploding aliens, but Max was quick to dodge, and Cheet stayed close by, engaging any of the aliens that Max missed. Within the space of an hour, they had blasted their way into the innermost sector of the ship, and Cheet jumped back as he saw a giant, disco-ball-like object lowering from a door in the ceiling.

"What the hell?" the cub asked, startled.

The orb began spinning wildly, and bright light beamed from the glass plates on the orb. "Welcome to my lair, you insignificant worms, prepare for a _shocking _encounter," the orb spoke in an eerie, mechanical voice.

Max, all weapons drawn, fired continuously at the orb, dodging the deadly rays of light. One of the beams brushed Cheet's side, and he briefly cried out in pain as searing heat pierced his side, and he saw his burned flesh melt, blood seeping through. Max continued firing, and the metal plates on the orb began to break off. Before long, the orb was little more than a glowing, sun-like ball of light. More firing, and the glowing sun became a small, unstable ball of light, insane beams shooting every which way. Max's quad-wield Uzis continued to fire, never stopping, and the orb winked out, followed by a large explosion and expanding rings of purple heat and light.

The power supply fallen, Max logged onto his radio, "Doctor, Max here."

"Max! Oh whose my little puppy wuppy dingy doggie!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Hey! Hey! Doctor...uh...unsecured line."

"Oh! Yes, yes, yes, of course...um...report?"

"Mission complete, deployment speed lacking. Must. Grease. Pelvis. Hehe, friction is distracting."

"Good job, boy! You get a special treat when you come home! Now find Kurt and I'll get you both back."

The ground briefly shook with footsteps, and Max, sniffing the air, twisted around as he growled. Once he saw the massive, purple alien standing before him, he exclaimed, "Sweet mother of kibble!"

In a deep, booming voice, the alien replied, "Down boy!" and he brought his massive hand down, knocking both Max and his companion unconscious.

"Bad doggie," the alien said, laughing a deep, throaty growl.

"Goddammit!" Piermont hissed, angered that they had lost radio contact with Max and Cheet.

"I swear," Alex roared at the doc, "If Cheet is hurt, I _will _have your head!"

"Now, now! It could be nothing more than a simple communications problem, no need to get so touchy!"

"Touchy? Doc, my soldiers are in danger! Do you expect me to just sit here and wait until we can get a hold on communications again? They took out that damned power core! That should have been enough! You said so!"

"Wrong! I said it _MIGHT _be the power core, they could have another jammer somewhere…"

"First of all, who is 'they', second of all, FIND THE JAMMER or GET MY SOLDIERS BACK HERE!"

"Patience, Commander! I'm trying my hardest, it's quite difficult! Nothing can ever be completed instantaneously, these things take time to accomplish."

"Well then GET YOUR ASS TO WORK!"

"Oi! Alex, chill out, man. Cheet will be fine."

Alex glared at his dragon.

"Okay…so I'm not gonna promise that…but I'm 95% sure that he can do well enough on his own. You trained him well, Commander, now's the chance to see if he listened to everything you have taught him."

"He's right, you know," Crash added, "We won't know how well he's done until he's thrust into an unexpected situation. Here's his chance to shine."

Alex looked around at his team, and each member nodded in agreement, "Fine then," Alex said, approaching the doctor and jamming his finger into the thin doc's chest, ""You have until tonight. If they aren't safe back here by then, I _will _avenge them."

"That might not be enough-"

Alex roared as he reached for his weapons.

"All right! All right! You'll have your little cheetah cub back here before the evening."

Relaxing, Alex replied in a low, menacing voice, "Good. I will keep you to your word," and he left the bridge.

A few minutes later, the doctor said, "I say, he is one temperamental character."

"He's only concerned for his team and his protégé. Don't take it personal," Sonic replied in a calming voice, "He always gets pissed when he's separated from an individual of his team for any length of time."

"Aren't you all worried as well? Surely this cub is a companion to you?"

"He is…" Simba began, "But Cheet's a rare one…he's a natural. If anyone can successfully take care of himself, it's Cheet. We have no need to worry about him, if he _is _in any sort of harm, Alex will be sure to bust him out before he suffers any lasting damage. We are also pretty damn sure that you can take care of him as well. We trust you, Alex…I suggest you take great care when treading around him, and make sure you make promises you _know _you can keep. Alex finds trusting others very difficult, he always has, it isn't until recently, after he was betrayed by one of his closest friends that he took his trust issues to the extreme. Keep your word, don't break any promises, and you will be sure to get, and stay, on his good side."

"Thanks…I guess."

"You're welcome. Now, we need to figure out how we are going to great our guys back home."

Suddenly, a deep voice, the voice of the purple alien, came on the radio, "Well, hello, Hawkins isn't it? Getting a little lonely?"

"Well yes actually, I miss my doggie. Holy Dooley! Who the heck are you?"

"Shwang Shwing, but you can call me sir."

"Well 'Shwang' if that is your real name, give me back my janitor!"

The alien laughed, and the screen went black.

-_**1211 Hours**_-

Alex and his team sat around the massive window on the bridge, looking over towards the distant ship. Doctor Hawkins was arguing with his computer, as he had been doing for the past hour, trying to find coordinates for Kurt. Eventually, the computer, speaking in that eerie voice, said "Kurt Hectic has been located, transferring power to teleportation relays."

In an instant, Kurt appeared within a flash of the light in the center of the room, shivering, and clad only in his boxers.

"Oh my!" Hawkins said.

"They took the suit, we're all doomed, can I go now?" the irritable janitor asked with a cough.

Chuckling, Hawkins replied, "Oh no, we're not licked yet!"

With a few console taps, a trap door in the floor opened up, revealing a wardrobe of body armor suits, "You're back in action Kurt!"

Immediately, the Doc dragged him to the teleporter, and the janitor replied, "What-? I-? Ugh…"

"Stop blathering my boy! They have Max!"

"Well then, can I at least have a suit?"

The doctor threw a suit to the janitor, and with a few more console taps, Kurt disappeared in a flash of light.

Turning to face the Terminators with a smile on his face, Hawkins replied, "There we go! Now, we can get this show on the road."

…"_Commander?"_

_A thick, smoky haze fills the air, reeking of burning flesh and rubber. The acrid smoke blindsthe Commander, he can't see, and his eyes burn…his whole body burns._

"_What…What is wrong with me? Where am I?" he asks himse__lf, not expecting a reply._

_However, another voice, one he does not recognize, emerges from somewhere in the smoke, "You, my child, are experiencing the future."_

"_What?" he asks the mysterious voice, "Who are you? Where are you?"_

_The Voice, obviously that of an older woman, speaks so close, as if right in his ear, and she whispers, "I am your Guardian, the one who is sent to watch over you, to ensure your safety."_

"_My Guardian? As in a Guardian Angel?"  
><em>

"_You might call me that, yes."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_My name? My name is Catala, I have been expecting you."_

"_Here? Why? Where am I?"_

"_Look and you shall see."_

_Opening his eyes, Alex sees the world before him…and gasps. He is staring at an immense city, walled, and covered by a shimmering, blue-tinted dome. Around him, the world is destroyed; the ground is charred, baked, fires burn continuously throughout this barren wasteland, fueled by mounds of twisted, jagged, burning steel. Above the distant metropolis, he gasps as he spots a black ribbon shooting across the sky, lined with massive, red lights. _What the hell? _he thinks to himself, astounded._

"_New Alexandria," Catala speaks. Her voice is close, and he turns abruptly in alarm as he spies the frail-looking old woman._

"_New Alexandria?"_

"_Aye."_

"_What the hell is New Alexandria?"_

_The old woman smiles, "You, Child, shall find out soon enough."_

"_What's going on? Why have you brought me here?"_

"_I came to deliver a message."_

"_A message? From who?"_

"_From your fallen ally."_

"_Rapid?"_

"_Aye."_

"_But…why isn't he here?"_

_She suddenly adopts a grave appearance, and Alex fears that she was about to say how Rapid's spirit had somehow died, how he hadn't survived his own personal hell, or purgatory, or wherever he had been taken after being so cruelly stolen from the physical realm. However, instead, she says, "He's…busy…But he is okay now."_

"_Now? You mean…"_

"_He has endured his torments, and now, he is free to decide whether or not he wishes to pass on into paradise."_

"_So Heaven?"_

"_Aye…but, he's delaying his answer."_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_He was given a choice: Heaven, or to forever stay on this planet as a roaming spirit, what you might call a Ghost."_

"_Why is he delaying?"_

"_Something tethers him to this realm, and I have no doubt that it is you, or one of the others of your militia."_

"_If you find him, tell him to go, to pass on into the void."_

"_It's not my decision to make, Commander, what he does is up to him. I can only sit and watch helplessly as he makes his final decision."_

"_Then I hope he makes the right one."_

"_As do I, as do we all."_

"_So, what was the message?"_

"_He wants you to watch out for yourself. He says that something very bad is imminent to occur, something that involves you and everyone else you hold dear. There was no specific day or time, and I don't think he even has one, he only says that he has dreamed, and that the dream is of a soon-to-occur event that could quite possibly hold fatal consequences."_

"_Oh God…if…if something else happens…" here he shakes his head, unable to fathom the impact._

"_I understand, but there is little you can do. There is a reason for ev__erything-both good and bad-that occurs. God has a reason for everything and there is little you can do to prevent your destiny."_

"_But I can't lose anyone else…I'm…I'm still recovering after Rapid…"_

"_No need to say anymore, young one, I understand. I am merely the messenger. Be careful, Child, that is all I can say. Now, it is getting to the time where I must go. Farewell, and may God bless your destiny, and the destinies of all who have been granted the privilege of befriending you."_

Alex awoke with a start, observing as Doctor Hawkins ran around the bridge, muttering to himself about how to find the coordinates for the alien homeworld. "I take it that you have figured out where my companion is?"

"Um…" Hawkins began, "Yes and no. I believe I might have lead, Kurt has informed me that he discovered Max imprisoned in that strange orbiter, and now he is following this Shwang character to the home planet."

"What do we do?"

"Simple! Receive the coordinates and we'll be on our way."

"Uh huh, and how, do you suppose, we find the coordinates? It isn't like one of those bastards are gonna waltz in here and surrender any information we need. We need to capture one of them alive, perhaps torture them a bit, and extract what we need."

"One big issue, Commander. These aliens are little more than metallic monstrosities."

"You mean robots?"

"Precisely what I mean!" the doctor said excitedly, "I don't know what we can do. They are probably programmed to not surrender the information! And even if they _could_, I wouldn't doubt that whoever is pulling the strings of this operation has their grimy finger or claw on a button somewhere, ready to shut down or destroy any captured units."

"Okay then, Doc. So, tell me, what is _your _ingenious plan?"

"That's just it! I don't know! I've never been confronted by this predicament before."

"Well, put that big brain of yours to use and figure something out."

"That's what I've _been _doing!"

"Well try harder!" Alex hissed, drawing his blade and swiftly pressing it to the doctor's neck, "If Cheet is harmed, I _WILL _keep my promise!"

"Fine! Fine! I'll get on the plan right away! I just need a moment or two to think…"

"You have one hour."

"That is not enough time! I'm not a strategist! If _you _think you can do better, then _YOU _think of a plan!"

"But, I'm not a genius like you."

Hawkins sighed, "I guess you are right then. I'll have your plan within the hour."

"Good," Alex replied with a smile, sheathing his knife, "I'll be eagerly awaiting your battle plan."

"Yes, yes…" and Hawkins left the bridge leaving Alpha Company, still asleep, alone. Alex walked over to the massive window, and turned to face it, staring out into the void of space, lost in thought over the meaning of his dream.

"Time's up, Doc. I want my solution."

"Commander, you didn't give me nearly enough time to figure this thing out…"

"Well I need a solution, and soon. Cheet is still in danger, and I don't want him harmed."

"Don't fret, Alex, he won't be harmed, I promise."

"Don't make a promise, Doctor, if you know you can't keep it."

"I will! I will! I just need the time…"

"Dammit Hawkins! We don't HAVE time!"

"Things would run so much smoother if _you _were to help me…"

"Can't you contact your dog? Surely he can send us the proper coordinates." 

"I haven't had radio contact with him since he knocked out that power supply."

"What do you suggest we do then?"

"Wait things out…"

"Oi…dammit," Alex collapsed into the seat, placing his head firmly in his palm. Rubbing his temples, he said, "I hate it when my troops are endangered and I can't even contact them."

"Everything will work out smoothly, Commander, don't you worry."

"But I _do _worry, that's just it."

"Hey, Alex, I'm sure Cheet's fine. You trained him well, he's our best melee fighter, damn near equal to you in strategy…I'm sure if anyone can get out of this freaking situation, he can."

"I appreciate your enthusiasm, Piermont, but I'm sure you will understand if I have my doubts."

"I do understand, Alex. But I ALSO understand that you have the leash to tight on him. You need to loosen the leash if you want him to become the best he can. He can take care of himself; you just need to give him a chance."

"Still though…"

"Still nothing, Alex! Holy crap, you are as stubborn as a goddamn mule."

"Ah, ah, ah! Language…" Hawkins interrupted, "No need to be foul-mouthed about this…"

"Screw you!" Piermont hissed, and the dragon stormed away.

"Great," Crash said with a sigh, "You succeeded in pissing him off...again."

"Well…"

"Just…don't speak, please," Crash began, "You have successfully pissed off both of the highest ranking members in the whole goddamn militia within five minutes of each other."

"I…have that effect on people…"

"He'll calm down eventually," Cherub replied nonchalantly, inspecting her talons. "Give him time, he's quick to anger, but also quick to cool. It's kinda amusing actually."

"Sure," the doctor began, "When you _a__ren't _the object of his fury."

"He's all bark and no bite," Crash interrupted, "He may seem angry and vicious, but I don't think he'd actually harm you."

"Then again," Cherub countered, "Alex always was the one to keep him calm…and the old doc did piss him off as well."

"Damn," the bandicoot replied, "Good point, didn't think about that."

"So…what now?" the doctor asked.

"For now?" Alex spoke, "Sit down, shut up, and figure out how in the bloody hell you are gonna get my soldier back here."

-_**Two Hours Later**_-

"Doc…can you hear me?"

"Max!" here Hawkins shot up, rushing to the computer terminal, "Max? Max! Is that you? Where are you?"

"The alien homeworld…"

"Can you send me the coordinates?"

"Sending them to you now…"

"See?" Hawkins asked the silent, staring Commander, "I _told _you we'd figure this out!"

"It's not over until Cheet is safe back here," with this, Alex said no more, and he left the bridge. Alpha Company watched him leave before turning to face Hawkins, who had his face buried in his computer.

"Brace yourselves!" Hawkins called, "We're in for a bumpy ride!"

With a few taps on the console, something deep within the bowels of the ship groaned, and in an instant, Alpha Company felt lightweight as the millions of stars outside the windows suddenly became a blur, and they traveled through the void of space as light speed. "HOLY CRAP!" Piermont screamed, struggling to retain his grip on the steel rail he was holding. His knuckles were white with the strain, and he appeared to be about to pass out.

"Careful now, Piermont!" Hawkins called, "Don't pass out, you will regret it!"

"Easier said than done, pops!"

Faster and faster it seemed they traveled, and outside their windows, they were alarmed to see that the stark whiteness of the starlight suddenly broke apart, filling the room with a psychedelic, epileptic flash of rainbow lights. Their ears popped, and they felt their consciousness drift farther and farther away from their bodies. The feeling was as if they were being ripped into two halves of one person, one physical, one spiritual.

And then...it stopped.

The stop was abrupt, so abrupt that Piermont went flying over the railing, collapsing in a heap on the steel platform. The others of the Mutant Division didn't fare any better, and the bridge was instantly filled with groans and cries of protest.

"Holy..." Crash began, "I _never_ want to have to do that again."

"You will," the seemingly unaffected doctor said, "We have to get back home after all."

"Son of a..." Piermont began, "Holy hell, this feels like the world's worst hangover."

"Oh stop your blathering, Piermont! We have work to do!"

A few more taps later, and Hawkins, as well as Alpha Company, found themselves on the planet's surface. The floor of this courtyard they were in was made entirely of paved stones, bluish-white in hue. The buildings held an odd, blocky appearance, and were pitch black in color. Occasionally, a neon sign, written in the Oriental-style language of the natives broke the otherwise colorless landscape.

"Ouch," Piermont said, "Blinded by the lack of colors. Hey Doc, are you _sure_ that my color sight wasn't damaged by that trippy space travel?"

"I'm 99.9% sure."

"So...what is the 00.1%?"

"Possibly."

"Lovely."

"...But I doubt it."

"Too late, damage is done."

"You are fine, stop complaining."

"'Tis what I do best."

"I can tell."

"Hey!"

"You said it, not me."

"Screw you!"

"No thanks."

"Here's an idea," Alex interrupted, "How about you BOTH shut the hell up and concentrate on the task at hand."

"I agree," the doc said with a firm nod.

"Shut up," Piermont grumbled.

"Don't start, Pierre," Alex warned.

"Or what?"

"I'm sure you have an idea."

"No I don't."

Here Alex sent his dragon a vicious glance, and Piermont recoiled, "Okay! Okay! Fine, I'll settle down."

"Thank you."

-_**2011 Hours**_-

"Any idea of where we are supposed to go?" Piermont asked.

"None whatsoever," Hawkins replied, looking around eagerly, "I do find this planet rather intriguing however."

"Why?"

"Well, think about it, Piermont! How often does one see an alien world?"

"It's called going to the movies."

"But this is real! A real life alien civilization!"

"Yeah, of aliens possessing huge-ass tanks ready to flatten the world."

"Eh...good point."

"So, Doc, what do you think we should do?" Alex asked.

"Maybe if we ask for coordinates, we can eventually find out a way to the palace. If they are going to imprison your friend somewhere, why not imprison them within the castle walls?"

"That...actually is a good point."

"Yeah," Piermont began, "One problem though..."

"What?"

"Does anyone here know how to speak alien?"

-_**2101 Hours**_-

Alpha Company stood at the base of the massive, castle-like palace. After failing to communicate with the non-hostile natives to the planet, they had decided to just wander the streets of the city until they arrived at their destination. As it turned out, they weren't far off to begin with.

"Hot damn!" Piermont said in awe, "This place is freaking beautiful!"

"It's about time you showed up," came an all-too familiar voice from behind them.

Alpha Company turned to face Kurt, who was staring at the towering structure.

"We were tied up," Hawkins replied, "But, we _did_ finally make it...you have a clear way in?"

"Nope, but I _do _have an idea..."

"Well, well, well!" Max said, suddenly appearing, "So you have decided to join us after all!"

"Yes, yes," the doctor replied impatiently, "Do _YOU _have an idea of how to get in?"

"I say we just shoot our way in."

"I'd much rather we just get in and out before we're even noticed," Kurt replied.

"No, no!" Hawkins interrupted, "No need to go in barking mad, Max! Surely with a few gizmos we can find a way."

"Pft, like _that_ will work..." Kurt interrupted.

"Hey! What do you mean by that!?" Hawkins replied angrily.

"I mean that half of the time, your little gizmos and gadgets don't work...or work against us..."

"Well I _never_!"

Alex and the rest of Alpha Company watch in genuinely good humor as the trio engaged in a violent verbal debate. As much as they wanted to bring them back onto the central topic, watching the fight was all-too-amusing to interrupt. So, deciding to allow some humor before what they assumed to be the final battle, they patiently waited as the three fuses burned themselves out.

After several minutes, the fight subsided, and the trio decided to go their separate ways. Enjoying the concept of a race to their destination, Alex and his team were quick to agree to find their own way in, agreeing to meet again once they entered the sanctuary of the planet (which Kurt said was named 'Swizzle Firma') leader. With an embittered countdown, the many individuals began to make their way inside.

Following Kurt's covert infiltration, Alpha Company soon found themselves in the sanctuary, where Max and the doctor were already waiting for their arrival. The massive throne room before them was pitch black, and they couldn't see. "So," Piermont whispered, "Where do you think the leader is?"

Suddenly, a ghoulish laugh filled the air, and the lights in the room suddenly flicked on as they stared at a massive, grotesque, wasp-like alien before them. The alien leader was green, with a tail in place of feet, a jet pack, a massive gold crown, and spiraling eyes, as if they had been hypnotized like in the old cartoons. The grin on the alien's scaly face was insane, and disturbed the militia greatly.

"Oh ho ho! Welcome to my humble abode! I was wondering when you would get here!" the alien said in a high-pitched, male voice, as if he had inhaled helium.

"What do you mean 'wondering when we'll get here'," Max growled, "You mean you were expecting us?"

"But of course! Once one figures out time and space things do get...rather boring..."

"You mean you invaded Earth for your own amusement?" Kurt asked, astounded.

"You egg-sucking, fish-faced, sea monkey!" Max growled.

"Now, now! No need to get so rude! It was all in good fun! Oh ho ho ho!"

"Prepare to die!"

"Oh ho! This shall be quite interesting! Bring it on! Ho ho, _bring it on_!"

Immediately, the crowd was quick into action, all parties firing their weapons upon the massive emperor of the planet. In retaliation, he tasked himself with hypnotizing or charging his attackers, however, under the onslaught of the mass, he was quick to fall.

The Swizzle Firmian emperor, Zizzy Ballooba, suddenly fell forward, gasping for breath as he sat on the ground, "You think...you have won? I think not!" Lifting himself from the ground, a black hole appeared in his stomach and expanded, and the crowd was stunned to realize that they were being sucked into the belly of the beast. Unable to withstand the suction of the vacuum, Alex disappeared in the stomach, and the hole abruptly closed.

"Alex!" Piermont screamed, "_Alex!_"

-_**The Belly of the Beast**_-

The Commander sat up, holding his head as he became aware of the awful stench, the sound of squirming objects, the feel of the slimy floor and the twitchy rocking of whatever he was inside. As he triggered his night vision, managing to find enough light to see his surroundings, he was disgusted to see the beating heart and pulsing lungs above his head, the swinging kidneys, the green globs of foul-smelling goo spewing from the various orifices of the beast. Suddenly hatching a plan as to how to kill the emperor, Alex turned his fire onto the various body parts around him. One by one, they exploded in a cloud of green gas, and soon he felt that suctioning force return as he was sucked up and out of the beast.

_-**The Sanctuary: The Palace, Swizzle Firma**_-

Alex went flying out of the mouth of the emperor, hitting the floor hard as a resounding crack filled his ears, and his vision exploded in a sea of colors. As he felt his unseen wounds heal, he watched as the emperor doubled over, holding his stomach before he exploded in a column of green blood and gore. After several moments of awkward silence, Max stood up, grabbing the bloody and slimy crown from the floor, shaking it dry, and putting it on his head, "I do believe that the royal family has changed over."

-_**Outside of the Palace, Swizzle Firma**_-

-_**2218 Hours**_-

"Are you sure you don't want to come with us?" Hawkins asked, furiously typing on his wristwatch as he prepared the transporters on his orbiting ship.

"I'm sure," Max replied with a nod, "We can't necessarily leave this planet without a leader...and besides, I do believe that this planet and its technology, especially the Minecrawlers, would make one helluva ally to Earth, and the militia that has helped us."

"So, you are joining us?" Alex asked, surprised.

"I don't see why not, you did, after all, help us deal with this little crisis here. Whenever you need our aide, just contact me, and I'll send any of this planet's weapons your way."

Alex nodded vigorously, unable to verbally announce his thanks. As he stood beside the doctor, who was finishing activating the onboard transporters, Max suddenly said, "One last thing."

"What?" Alex asked.

"We found this thing in the dungeon," here Max nodded towards the palace door, where a tired looking Cheet emerged from the darkness, into the light.

"Cheet!" Alex cried.

"Alex!" the cub replied, and the two ran to each other, Cheet hopping into the Commander's arms as they hugged.

"I'm so glad you're okay!"

"I'm so glad you came to rescue me..."

"Of course, Cheet, never leave a man behind, remember?"

They hugged one more time before Hawkins said, "Sorry to interrupt this touching, heartwarming reunion, but it is time."

"Thanks again, Max," Alex said.

"No, Commander, thank you."

With a final goodbye, the world suddenly flashed white with a blinding white. When it cleared, Alpha Company was gone.


	8. Chapter VIII: A Western Tale

_**Chapter VIII**_**:**

**-''A Western Tale''**-

-**Thomas Jefferson Elementary School: Connorsville, Illinois-**

**-**_**07 May 2004**_-

-_**1214 Hours**_-

Alpha Company sat around their usual lunch table, eating as they discussed their lack of recent missions as well as other things of interest. Cheet, however, said very little, and often stared off into space, lost in thought. He paid little attention to the others, and Alex, confused by his protege's sudden lack of interest tried to involve the cub in their conversations, but the cub barely acknowledged him.

That night, Cheet's personality was still distant, and Alex decided just to leave him alone. After the others had long since retired, and only Alex and his dragon remained awake, Piermont, whom Alex was bathing, said, "What do you think is wrong with Cheet?"

"What do you mean?"

"He's just...I don't know..."

"Distant?"

"Yeah...distant..."

"I don't know what in the hell is wrong with him, all I know is that he better get over it, because the last time someone grew distant from the militia, two key members ended up locked away in the funny farm."

"Yeah..." Piermont muttered, remembering very clearly the events that happened shortly after Rapid's untimely demise, "Anyways, on to more important matters...any idea on where we're gonna establish our capital?"

For several months now, Alex had been dead set on establishing a permanent capital for the militia, and as of late he had been researching on locations to build his metropolis. Now, what took up most of his time was the constant, never-ending research as Alex tried to find the perfect location to build his city. It proved more of a challenge than he originally imagined, but his intention to complete the construction trumped all obstacles that could possibly stand in his way.

"Not a clue," Alex sighed, "But soon, we will have our capital, and people will have second thoughts when they decide to screw with us."

"I hope so."

"They will."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I believe that if we have a capital, it will legitimize our military. Right now, most people probably see us as little more than a stage that some imaginative boy and his friends go through. If we establish our city, we can prove to the world that we are serious in our actions, and that we truly are as dangerous as we say we are."

"Although I have my doubts, it does make sense to me."

"Exactly as I had thought."

"Big question though..."

"What?"

"How in the bloody hell will we get the resources to enact our plans, even if we have our location?"

"Simple."

"Elaborate?"

"The same way how we created Fort Ozark, telegenesis."

"Telegenesis?"

"Aye."

"What the hell is that?"

"The ability to create things by merely imagining their existence."

"And we have that?"

"Aye," to demonstrate, Alex's glance turned to the empty toilet seat, and, in a brief flash of light, Piermont was stunned to see a hot cheeseburger on a plate where there was empty space mere moments ago.

"What the hell!? What do you just do!?"

"Telegenesis. That's what it does."

"Nice...but if you don't imagine every little detail...couldn't you accidentally build a house with no nails to support the boards, no roof, etc?"

"Yes, and that is why telegenesis is so damn hard, especially when it involves larger objects. It took me over a month to correctly construct Fort Ozark, and even then, the structure had its fatal flaws. Lately, I've been concentrating more and more to understand every little detail, to know the house inside and out. How many nails and where they must go, how much wood, how much roofing, the landscape, how many blades of grass...there are so many details that factor in, it's a bitch to say the very least."

"Ouch."

"Exactly."

"So, when are we gonna build?"

"As soon as I find the proper location."

"Yeah...well...good luck with that."

"Don't worry, Pierre," Alex said with a sigh, standing and stretching, "It'll work out."

"I sure hope so, man."

-_**The Next Day**_-

Alex's phone chirped, awakening him from a sound sleep. Glancing at the clock, he saw it read just past the witching hour. With an annoyed grunt, he climbed out of bed, dressing himself as he answered his phone. "Alex here."

"Alex?" came Elliot's unmistakeable voice, "You awake, son?"

"No."

"Well, then hurry up."

"Why?"

"We've been deployed."

"Ah hell..."

"Don't worry, it isn't _too _bad."

"Elliot, anytime we are deployed, something bad always happens, remember?"

"Yes, yes, I remember quite clearly, but I honestly don't see how anything can go wrong here."

"Then cut to the chase."

"Okay then, remember the Pickles?"

"Holy crap, I haven't seen them in years..."

"I know."

"What do they want? Does Stu want us as rent-a-cops again?"

"Not this time."

"Then what does he want?"

"He didn't specify, only that he would like to see us. He said it wasn't urgent, so I doubt it's anything bad."

"I hope you're right, Elliot."

"Just giving you what he told me to tell you."

"When does he want us?"

"Well...it isn't urgent, so whenever."

"He does realize that we live all the way in Illinois right? This better be worth the gas and time."

"Hopefully it is, I'm every bit as excited as you to go such a far distance."

"'Cause if I get there and he only wants to show me his newest failed invention, I'm gonna hit the goddamn roof."

"I know you will, I trust he's smarter than that."

"He better be."

"See you at the airfield."

"Yeah..."

With a heavy sigh, Alex ended the call, crawled back into bed, and fell back asleep.

"Ho-ly crap!" Piermont exclaimed with a laugh, "It's been years since we've last been here."

"Agreed," Alex replied with a nod.

"Much has changed with us..." Cheet began, sighing, "I wonder how much has changed with them."

"I wonder if they know about Rapid," Alex sighed, his voice heavy with sadness.

"I doubt it," Piermont muttered, "It's not like they were completely involved with our numbers. They probably don't even remember the vast majority of us."

"He's got a point," Crash began, "It's been quite some time since we've last seen them...and even then, it was only for a little less than a night. If they remember anybody, it's probably Alex and possibly Piermont or Cheet. I doubt they remember the rest of us."

"And Prancy?" Kovu asked.

"I doubt they remember him either."

"C'mon," Alex sighed, "Let's get this over with."

As they walked over to the front door, Piermont commented, "They better not make us rent-a-cops again."

Alex knocked at the door. He waited for several moments, and when no one answered, he knocked again.

"What? Are they even expecting us?" Piermont asked.

"I called them on our way here, they said 'okay'."

"Should we call again?"

"Just wait, maybe they're on still in bed."

"C'mon now! It's late!" Piermont laughed, grinning widely.

"It's late for us...we're used to 5 o'clock, 6 o'clock awakenings, the majority of Americans don't wake up till later," Alex replied.

"Well then! Here's their 8 AM wake up call!" Piermont transformed back into his normal, Dragonian form and let loose a loud bellow, even as Alex rushed to silent him. Almost immediately afterward, the dogs of the neighborhood began barking wildly, and the citizens angrily tried to silence their pets.

"Way to go, dumbass," Alex muttered, "Way to wake up the entire goddamn neighborhood."

"You are most welcome, Commander."

"Shut up."

"No! _You _shut up!"

"Here's an idea," Sonic interrupted, "How about the both of you shut up?"

"Screw you!" Piermont roared.

"Right back atcha, asshole."

Piermont's eyes narrowed, and as he stepped forward to attack the Captain, Alex intervened, forcefully throwing the both of them back. "Piermont," he warned, "Don't. And Sonic?"

"Yes, Commander?"

"Don't antagonize him. He'll throw a tantrum."

"Hey!" Piermont growled, "Uncalled for!"

"See what I mean?" Alex grinned.

"You know what? Screw you!"

"That's what she said."

"What-? I-? That doesn't even make sense!"

"It does if you're as dirty minded as I _thought_ you were."

Piermont stared at his rider, fury melted into confusion, "What in the bloody hell are you talking about?"

Shaking his head, Alex said, "Never mind."

"No, I'm serious. What are you going on about?"

"It doesn't matter."

"It does, t-"

Covering his dragon's mouth with his palm, Alex said, slowly and clearly, "No, it does not matter."

"But-"

"Stop."

"But I-"

"Stop! Goddammit, Pierre, that's an order!"

"Fine," Piermont sighed, surrendering, "I'll stop."

"Good. Oh! Hey! I think I hear someone coming..."

The door to the house opened, and an unfamiliar voice said, "Can I help you?"

"Commander Alex Vaughn, a Stu Pickles wanted to talk to me."

"Oh, he did?"

"Aye."

"Okay then, Commander. Hold on."

The door abruptly shut, and Piermont whispered, "Jesus, someone's being a dick," but Alex shushed him.

"Dad! It's for you!" they could hear the voice say from within the house.

Moments later, the door opened, and a panting Stu opened the door, struggling to throw on a shirt as he said, "C'mon in."

They entered the house, the first thing they noticed was that the shades were drawn, the living room was covered in blankets and pillows, and the Xbox was on, all controllers laying scattered around the room along with pizza boxes and empty cans of soda.

"Holy..." Piermont began, but Alex sent him a warning glance.

"Forgive the mess," Stu said, "But the children are lazy."

"S'okay," Alex began, "What did you need?"

"Or rather," Piermont began, "What did you drag us all the way from Illinois for?" Alex elbowed him painfully, and he exclaimed, "Ow!"

"My bad...eh..."

"Piermont."

"Right, Piermont...anyways, my bad, but I am going to send the children to my cousin's for a week, and I need you to escort."

"Rent-a-cops again? Really?"

"Not rent-a-cops, Piermont, just supervision."

"Why are you sending them to your cousin's?"

"He owns a ranch, and I think it's high time these kids learn a lesson in hard work."

"We can do that," Alex began.

"Really?"

"Sure," Alex continued, "We have nothing else planned."

"God dammit, really?" Piermont muttered.

"Yes, really."

"Why?"

"It'll be good for us."

"Ha! No it won't!"

How can you think so, Pierre?"

"I just know it won't!"

"Whatever, Piermont. We're gonna do it, so stop bitching."

"Fine..."

"Anyways, so when do we head out?"

"If I call him now, he'll be here in an hour or two."

"So you haven't even called him yet?"

"I was waiting for your arrival."

"Ah, mkay."

"Make yourselves comfortable, I'll be right back."

There came a knock at the door, and a disgruntled Alex opened it to see a short, stocky, tanned man in white leather cowboy clothes standing on the stoop. "Mornin'!" he said in a strong, southern accent, "Hope I'm at the right house."

"Oh! Hi!" Stu said eagerly, quickly pushing Alex aside, "Come on in."

"Definitely not a city boy," the man said with a hearty laugh, "Got lost probably fifty times."

"Children!" Stu called upstairs, "Come here!"

One by one, the kids walked downstairs, sending a surprised glance at Alex and Alpha Company, now standing around the open kitchen, adjacent to the living room. "Alex?" Tommy asked, stepping forward, "It's been awhile..."

Alex's jaw dropped, and Piermont remarked, "Holy crap! You've grown!"

Indeed they had, they no longer had the appearance of four and five year olds like they did back when the events at Christmasland occurred. Now, three years later, they were older. Almost immediately, Tommy asked the Commander, "Where's Rapid?"

One could almost feel the sudden drop in the aura of the room.

"Something happened...didn't it..." Tommy continued, saddened.

It was Cheet who spoke, his voice thick with the melancholy they all felt, "He's...he's not here anymore."

"He died...didn't he?"

Although it was alarming to hear such a young child speak that phrase as innocently and understandably as he did, Alex slowly nodded and said, "Yes...he died."

"When?"

"Two years ago."

"What happened?"

"It doesn't matter," Piermont replied, embittered, "There's no sense in bringing it up again. We're all still going through hell overcoming the damned thing."

"He was shot," Alex replied.

"Is he better off now?"

The Commander, thinking for a few moments, slowly nodded, "Yeah, I'd like to think that he's better off now. No more war...no more pain...no more suffering..." here, the Commander choked, and he couldn't go on.

"Can we please change the subject now?" Cheet asked, "Please?"

"Aye," Piermont replied, "The little bastard has a point."

The cub glared at him, and Piermont, in turn, smiled mischievously back.

"Please Piermont, don't start," Alex pleaded.

"Okay," the dragon replied, obviously unhappy.

"Anyways..." the southern man began, "C'mon, pack your things and let's go."

"Go? Where?" Alex asked.

"Why, to the ranch, of course!"

"Ranch? What ranch?"

"Hehe..." Stu began, rubbing his neck in embarrassment, "In order to teach the kids a lesson in hard work, I'm sending them to a ranch for the week..."

"Let me guess..." Piermont began, "You want _us_ to supervise?"

"Um...yeah..."

Piermont's face adopted a grim look, and he lowered his head, "Son of a bitch!"

"Settle down, Pierre, I highly doubt it will be _that_ bad."

Piermont glared at his rider, "So _you_ think!"

"Stop arguing," Sonic interrupted, "Please?"

"Who's arguing?" Alex asked, "I'm simply making a statement."

"Of reassurance," Cheet agreed with a vigorous nod.

"Oi," Piermont said with a sigh, "Fine, let's get this over with..."

"It won't be bad, Pierre."

"I beg to differ."

"Why are you always so damn negative?"

"Here's a much better question...why not?"

"For the love of...just shut up already!" Cherub hissed, "I've had enough of both of you! Now shut your goddamn mouths before I slit your throats!"

Cherub's sudden outburst caught both dragon and rider off guard, and everyone in the room just gaped at her in disbelief. The normally shy, quiet dragonness was obviously angry, nostrils flaring and eyes afire.

"Well..." Cheet said, "She's even better at getting her point across than Al-"

"Don't even say it, Cheet," Alex interrupted, "Don't."

Cheet closed his mouth, making a zipping motion across his lips and nodding vigorously.

"So many awkward silences in our team," Piermont remarked, "Can we ever go a conversation without awkward silences?"

"I plead the fifth," Alex suddenly said.

"Same here," Cheet replied.

"Ditto," Crash replied.

"Nevermind!" Piermont hissed.

Once more attempting to speak, the man replied, "Anyways, are y'all ready? We need to head out before it gets any later, I need to be back for afternoon herding."

"Yes," Stu replied, emerging from upstairs with several bags, already packed, "They are ready."

"Well I'll be darned! Let's get movin'!"

The man, whistling a southern tune left the house, and the others hesitantly followed suit, at the eager urgings of Stu.

"Holy hell!" Piermont exclaimed, "A goddamn carriage and a horse!" he laughed, "This trip might just be worth it after all."

"Never thought you'd be into being jostled and thrown around by a good old-fashioned horse and buggy, Pierre," Alex said with genuine amusement in his voice.

"But of course," Piermont replied with a sly smile, "Who _hasn't_ put 'riding in a carriage' on their bucket list?"

Suddenly, everyone in the group, minus Piermont and the southern man, raised their hands.

"Well..." Piermont began, obviously surprised speechless by the reply to his rhetorical question, "I guess I'm the lone wolf...as per usual."

"Don't worry...uh..." the southern man began.

"Piermont...Pierre to my friends."

"Okay then? Anyways, don't worry Piedmont-"

"Piermont."

"Right...uh...don't worry, I'm with you on this one."

"Oh lovely, I feel _so_ special."

"You should, there's nothin' quite like the feelin' of being driven by a team of horses. Y'see, back in the day, nobody had their fancy hot rods and trucks, you just had the always-reliable carriage and horse. Unfortunately, nobody wants to tolerate a slower TOA in exchange for a longer view of some of the most beautiful scenery in the world anymore. Didya know? There are still some societies who still use the horse and buggy, for example, the Amish..."

The rest of his long-winded story was lost as the group climbed into the back of the carriage, became engulfed in their own conversations, and the vehicle took off, heading towards the southeast horizon.

"One, two, three, four, can I have a little more? Five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, I love you," Alex began.

"A, B, C, D, can I bring my friend to tea? E, F, G, H, I, J, I love you," Piermont continued.

"Bom, bom, bom, bompa bom, sail the ship, bompa bom, chop the tree, bompa bom, skip the rope, bompa bom, look at me," the others replied in perfect harmony.

Alex then led them off, "All together now!"

"All together now," the crowd answered.

"All together now!"

"All together now!"

"Black, white, green red," Cheet picked up, "Can I take my friend to bed? Pink, brown, yellow, orange, and blue, I love you."

"All together now!" Alex led.

"All together now!" the crowd replied.

Throughout the entire trip, Alex, strumming the acoustic guitar on his lap, led them off, playing the song as the others sang along. Although looking back, the members of Alpha Company would kick themselves over how immature they were to be singing such a childish Beatles song, at that particular point in time, they were united as they sang along. Once the song was finished, Alex began to wonder what life would be like if he were to start a band with a few of his friends. Mentally, he went over each individual member of Alpha Company, picking and choosing who could join him in his possible future band.

He then decided that he would wait to announce his intentions. The suddenness of the idea usually signified that it wouldn't last long, but in the case that he did decide to carry through, then he would tell his friends and brothers-in-arms of his idea. Until then, he was enjoying the minutes of spontaneous singing as _All Together Now_ melted away into _Hey Bulldog_, and that became _Lady Madonna_. Eventually, they arrived at their destination, and Alpha Company disembarked. Almost immediately, the various ranch hands were struck silent, fear obvious on their faces, at the sight of the members of Alpha Company, Piermont especially. As he always did whenever someone was terrified by his presence, Piermont exploited their fear, purposely making himself more fearsome and vicious than he really was in an attempt to derive the maximum amount of terror in the gathered crowd.

Sure enough, with a blast of white fire into the sky, and a hellish roared emanating from his muzzle, the crowd scattered, and Alex could only hang his head and struggle not to laugh. _Such low self-esteem he must have_, the Commander thought to himself, behind the closed walls of his mind, _For him to have to scare the living piss out of others upon their first meeting_.

Eventually, Alex intervened, and Piermont, smiling mischievously, transformed back into his human form, as the southern man led them further into the ranch. Alex spared a glance at the gate behind them, closing with a loud, metallic bang, and he vaguely thought off being incarcerated in some kind of prison where they would be forced to work. However, this thought almost immediately disappeared as they were led on a grand tour by the owner of the ranch.

Darkness fell upon the world all too soon, and the last place the owner led them was to the bunkhouses-an AC-less, humid, burning hot cabin. "Well," the owner began, "This is where y'all be stayin' for your vacation. Now, I'll leave ya to yer own devices, we get up tomorra at the crack o' dawn."

"Say what now?" Piermont began, "Ah crap, summer and we're _still _having to wake up early."

"Stop bitching, Pierre," Alex interrupted, then, to the owner, "That's fine, we'll be up."

"Yokay, have a good 'un."

"Goodnight."

"'Night!"

The door slammed shut, and soon, everyone was thrust into total darkness. Lighting various oil lamps, Piermont asked, "What the hell!? No electricity!?"

"Apparently not," Cheet replied, "Oh well, we'll manage."

"Pierre," Alex began, "They are up from the crack of dawn until darkness falls, constant work. They don't need electricity, because they aren't awake long enough to need it. Now, stop arguing and just go to sleep."

"This is gonna be one crappy vacation."

"Stop it, Pierre."

"Goodnight, everybody," Sonic said, collapsing on the cot and falling asleep instantly.

The others followed suit, and within moments, they were asleep.

Cheet awoke early that morning. Standing and stretching, he realized what had aroused him from his slumber, the soft strumming of a guitar. Confused, he glanced over towards Alex's cot, activating his night vision. Just as he suspected, the cot was empty. Wondering where the Commander had disappeared off to, Cheet climbed out of bed, quietly creeping around the other sleeping members in the shared cabin, and towards the barn door, opened just a crack and allowing bright moonlight to seep through.

Quietly, he exited the bunkhouse, following the dark, empty trail. Eventually he arrived at a small pond, and the Commander, wide awake, sat on the fence running along the pasture, strumming his guitar as he began to sing _Across the Universe_, looking towards the full, fat moon.

"Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup, may slither while they pass they slip away across the universe. Pools of sorrow, waves of joy are drifting through my opened mind, possessing and caressing me."

Cheet then added his voice to Alex's for the chorus, "Jai Guru Deva, om. Nothin's gonna change my world. Nothin's gonna change my world. Nothin's gonna change my world. Nothin's gonna change my world."

Alex, still singing, glanced at his protege, nodding for the cub to come closer. Now with both sitting on the fence post, teacher and pupil versed the song, singing it into the night, bonding. Switching off whenever a new verse came along. However, the song was all too short, and in the distance, the sun began to rise. Turning to the cub, Alex said, "Well, methinks it's time we return to the bunkhouses. The others will awaken soon, and we don't want to worry them with our absence."

"Agreed," the cub replied with a nod.

Leaping off of the fence post, the duo headed back to the bunkhouse as the sun slowly arose over the new day.

Alex and the rest of his army sat around the livestock pens, waiting for the ranch's owner to arrive. Earlier that morning, he had requested to meet his visitors there at around nine in the morning. The kids that had arrived with them were more than likely still in bed asleep, but Alex, use to five and six AM awakenings, was wide awake and ready. While they talked, the kids finally arrived, looking as if they had just crawled out of bed.

"About damn time you showed up," Piermont said with a laugh, "We were wondering if you were still alive."

"Shut up," Tommy replied, embittered, "I was tired."

"I guess."

They glared at the dragon, in his human form.

"What? The hell did I say?"

"Ignore them, Pierre," Alex replied, stretching, "When are we supposed to meet this bastard?"

"He said nine o' clock," Cheet answered, "Whether or not he is exact in his timing, I'm still not sure."

"Well, I'm waiting, but I'm getting tired of it."

"Ain't we all," Piermont replied.

Nine AM arrived soon enough, and their host was not a moment late, "Mornin'!" he said, "Hope you guys are ready."

"For what?" Alex asked.

"Y'all will see."

They were given horses and their host led them out of the pens and towards a distant valley.

It was noon by the time the group arrived at the canyon. As they approached the lip of the vertical wall, their host stopped, dismounted his horse, and reached into a cooler behind him, taking out a bottle of water. Reaching into his satchel, Alex removed cans of Mountain Dew and tossed them to each of his comrades.

"A beauty ain't she?" the big man said dreamily, more to himself than anything.

"I guess..." Piermont replied, unsure of how to answer, "Be damn good to fly through."

"I second that," Alex muttered, "Why don't we?"

Piermont shook his head, "No, not right now."

"Why not?"

"The damn thing is narrow as hell, and I'm not familiar with it, the last thing you want me to do is to fly at high speeds through narrow, unfamiliar terrain."

"Why?" Cheet asked, amused.

"Because, we'd end up splattered against the canyon wall, that's why."

"I highly doubt it would be _that_ bad," Alex added, egging Piermont on.

"Oh really? If you want to fly through the pit, then find another dragon, I ain't gonna do it."

"Okay then," Alex then reared his horse.

"Goddammit you smart-ass bastard!" Piermont hissed, "I wasn't suggesting-"

"You said it, so I will."

Piermont sighed, planting his face into the palm of his hand, "Oi, you arrogant little prick."

Alex smiled widely, "C'mon now! Be a good sport, we're always the butt of your jokes."

"Yes, but no one, and I repeat, _no one_ will make me the butt of a joke."

"Well that's not really fair is it?"

"Do I look like I'm someone who gives a rat's ass about fair? I'm Piermont the goddamn dragon, nobody screws with me, or else I'll rip their goddamn heads from their goddamn shoulders."

"Sheathe the machismo, Pierre, you don't need to act all tough and badass, we all know how you _really _are."

"I _AM_ tough and badass."

This statement caused everyone in Alpha Company to break down and laugh.

"It's not funny!"

"Is too," Cheet said, still laughing.

"No it's not! I'm serious!"

"Yeah, and I'm a flying pig."

"Are you _really _trying to piss me off, Alex? I may be your dragon, and killing you might kill me as well, but I can sure as hell cause you to regret every word you say without any repercussions to my health and well-being."

"Now you're lying through your ass," Alex continued, his good-humor now becoming stern and serious, "You know as well as I do that any pain inflicted upon me is transferred to everyone in this army, to you especially. So putting me in a painful situation will also, consequently, throw you into a painful situation, so if you care even the smallest bit about self-preservation, I suggest you don't try anything stupid."

"I'm kidding! Jesus Christ, Alex, do you not know the meaning of a joke?"

"Oh, I know what a joke is, I just don't understand your immature sense of humor."

"Immature-? What the hell are you going on about? I'm the funniest guy in this whole damn squadron, NOBODY trumps me when it comes to humor."

"Uh huh, whatever gets you through the night, Pierre," Cheet replied smugly, "You are all bark and no bite."

"Oh really now? Shall we test this title?"

"I rather wouldn't."

Alex then elbowed Piermont in the ribs, hard.

"Ow!" Piermont exclaimed, "Dammit Alex, you bastard! What the hell was _that _for!?"

"You need to settle down, Piermont, before you hurt yourself or someone else."

"Oh ho! Aren't _you_ the one to talk about hurting others or someone else."

Alex's eyes narrowed, "What do you mean by that?"

Piermont adopted a smug smile, "You know very well what I mean."

"No I don't, why don't you enlighten us O High Lord of Douchebaggery?"

"Haha! Now you are finally growing a pair of balls! It's about damn time!"

Alex rolled his eyes, "Just...shut up, Pierre."

"Shut up, Alex!"

"Piermont," Cheet said in a warning tone, "Shut up, please."

"Oh! So you are gonna throw in the formalities now?"

"Quiet, Pierre!" Sonic growled.

"Fine! Fine! Jesus, you guys are so pissy."

"Only because you have a knack for getting on everyone's nerves."

"Everybody has to have a niche in life, mine is comic relief."

"I call BS," Sonic continued, "You are the king of arrogance. You are a sorry bastard who thinks he's funnier than he really is, and tries to 'play jokes' on everyone else by exploiting weaknesses and bullying others. You are a sadist who gets off on others pain and suffering, and whenever someone calls you on your bluff, you claim that it is 'only a simple joke' and that we are 'overreacting'.You are an ass, simple as that, and we are all tired of hearing your constant complaining and overall crap. So do us all a favor and just shut your goddamn trap for once is your freaking life."

Piermont's jaw dropped, and he was stunned speechless. Never before had he been told off like that before, especially by someone who normally didn't blow up like that. He lowered his head, staring at the cracked, arid, baked ground, deeply humiliated.

Alex, the only one knowing that Piermont's arrogance was only a facade put on to hide his natural shyness and humility, suddenly felt bad for tormenting his dragon, and he was immediately at his friend's side, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

"Oh great!" Cheet remarked, "We finally throw Piermont off of his high horse and _you_, Alex, are there to pick him back up. Why can't you just let him marinate in his own self-loathing and embarrassment? Why do you always have to raise him as if he's some kind of hero?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

"I will not."

"Why won't you tell me?"

"Because you don't share a dragon/rider bond, you wouldn't understand."

"Even if he doesn't," Crash said, stepping forward, "I will, I have Drake, remember? So if you won't tell him, why don't you tell me?"

"Because you _still _wouldn't understand."

"You know what, Commander? I don't understand _you_," with this, Crash left following their guide into the canyon. Alpha Company was behind him, and Cheet, the last one to leave, took one look back at the Commander and shook his head before he too walked away.

Eventually, only Alex and Piermont remained.

Once everyone else was long gone, and as Alex began to head into the canyon, Piermont suddenly spoke again, all shred of his false personality miraculously vanished, "Why do you support me?" he asked, his voice full of a genuine curious tone.

As usual, Alex was stunned by just how small and shy Piermont really was, especially after his last, by far the biggest, outburst.

"I support you, because I know who you really are."

"But why?"

"Because you are my friend," Alex then turned his back to the dragon, beginning his descent into the canyon. As he was about to rappel down the cliff, he looked over his shoulder and towards Piermont's direction, "And I love you," with this last statement, he disappeared over the edge.

For a few more moments, Piermont remained in place, thinking over his recent outburst and Alex's usual charity. He smiled, Alex really was the only one who truly knew and understood him. Although he was an expert at pulling off his false bravado, especially after years of practice, his angry outburst was not a show, it was real. The dragon wondered if Alex knew that that really was a sample of Piermont's very real, albeit rarely seen, fury, at first he doubted it, but as he approached the lip of the canyon, he then concluded that Alex knew it. He had too. As Alex had said, the Commander knew the _true_ him, and was the only one that did. That, coupled with their sacred bond, Alex must know the difference between Piermont's fake personality and his real one.

Maybe that was why Alex backed off, because he felt regret for attacking the dragon, and maybe once he realized that Alpha Company's attempts to take down his imaginary arrogant attitude were actually hitting closer to him than they thought, breaking him down to near tears and puncturing his charade, injuring his natural, _true_ personality, he had decided to comfort him. Only Alex knew the truth, and only he knew exactly how painful their retaliation was to him. Alex knew and understood, his 'badass' personality and ideas _were _a joke.

Turning these thoughts over and over inside of his mind, Piermont approached the canyon and began his descent into the massive maw of mother nature.

"Holy crap..." Cheet muttered, glancing around and staring at the immense, jagged, sandstone walls of the canyon with a look of awe and amazement.

"It's beautiful!" Cherub said dreamily, and a glance at the girl from Alex confirmed his suspicions, he was thinking of Piermont. It was odd, but he could almost see Piermont's reflection in her eyes, and he came to identify this sign as that she had the forest dragon on her mind.

"Meh, I've seen better," came Piermont's voice from behind, and he immediately shoved his way to Alex's side.

"Can you go one moment without making some kind of demeaning remark?" Sonic asked with a hint of annoyance.

"I don't know, can you go one moment without being such a dick?"

"Piermont," Alex warned, "Sonic, don't start. Enough of this already."

"Anyways," Cheet interrupted, turning to their host, "So, what exactly are we here for?"

"Y'all find out when we get there."

_-**1333 Hours**-_

The sun soon began its descent in the west, and their host paused, turning to them, "Well," he began, "Let's take a break here and get somethin' to eat, what do y'all say?"

"Sounds good," Cheet said, licking his lips.

"About damn time," Piermont muttered.

It didn't take long for them to find their ideal picnicking spot, it was right beside a small pond at the base of a waterfall coming from a stream above the canyon. Once their sandwiches had been eaten, Alex and the rest of Alpha Company leaped into the pond, swimming up and resting against the warm rock.

"Holy crap!" Alex began, "This water is so warm..."

"It's a hot spring!" Cheet nodded vigorously, "And boy does it feel good."

"Enough boys, we need to get movin'," their host interrupted.

"Aww! C'mon!" Cheet frowned, "Why can't we enjoy this for awhile?"

"Fine, y'all have half an hour."

"Good enough for us."

Once their half hour was up, they climbed out of the pool and continued their trek. An hour in, Cheet turned to their host and asked, "So, where are we going again?"

"A good ol' fashioned roundup! Yeehaw!"

"Say what now?"

"You heard right!"

"O...kay? So who are we 'rounding up'?"

"There they be," he whispered excitedly, pointing towards a crowd of large, bird-like creatures.

"Ostriches?" Piermont queried, raising an eyebrow.

"Ayup!"

"Damn, no horses? Cows? Chickens? Anything?" Alex asked.

"Nope, nope, nope, and nope. Just ostriches," he replied with a wide grin.

"Oi..." the Commander muttered, "C'mon man...why?"

"Better question is, why not? Now c'mon! We have a job to do! Yeehaw!"

Alpha Company and the kids exchanged confused glances.

"Um...Alex? I...I don't get it..."

"Neither do I, Pierre, neither do I."

Gasping for breath, Alpha Company barely managed to catch up to their racing host. He was obviously extremely excited, and Alex failed to see what was so thrilling about herding ostriches. For the first time since they arrived at the ranch, he regretted coming here.

While lost in thought, he hardly had time to stop as he almost barreled into his paused host, staring out past the herd of ostriches and to the distant horizon.

"What is it?" the Commander asked, slightly annoyed.

"Somethin' ain't right here..."

"You don't say?"

"I can feel it...and I can smell it..."

He made a show of sniffing the air, "C'mon, we need to get these birds to safety, NOW!"

"What? Why?" rolling his eyes, Alex sniffed the air in much the same way that their host did...and then...he identified the smell almost immediately. The air reeked of gasoline, oil, and...

"Oh sh-" he began before a loud explosion sounded off and a column of golden sand shot into the air. "RUN!" he cried, "IT'S A GODDAMN AMBUSH!"

Alpha Company, the children, and their host immediately began running forward, following the massive crowd of stampeding ostriches. Not too long afterward, they heard the drone of a gas engine, and a shadow fell upon the canyon as a group of black-clothed men appeared on the canyon's lip, crouching down and firing upon them with shotguns.

"What the _hell _is going on!?" Cheet cried.

"Poachers!" their host cried out.

Four motorbikes sped to them, and Alex, swift to act, jumped onto one, knocking the poacher off. Revealing the shotgun on the bike, he fired at the following bikes, covering their fleeing group and leading the poachers away from the ostriches. Once the kids and their host had left with the ostriches. Alpha Company turned back to aide their commander in repelling their enemies. The bikers grew closer to them, and Alex fired into their wheels and engines, disabling them in large explosions. Eventually, only one remained.

"Alex!" Cheet cried, "He's right on your six!"

"I know!" Alex called back, he waved them off, "Get away from here, I'll lure this last one to his death."

"Are you sure?"

"Totally!"

Cheet nodded and signaled for the rest of Alpha Company to follow him. As Alex took the opposite fork from his team, he whispered to himself, "Time to die you bastard."

He revved up the engine, bringing the bike to its maximum speed as he approached a natural ramp. Faster, faster he sped until the needle on the odometer was in the red. Once he had achieved maximum speed, he eased up on the throttle as his pursuer neared closer and closer to him. His enemy revealed a sawed-off shotgun and began firing at him, Alex retaliated by firing his commandeered shotgun at the other.

His original intention was to lead the man closer to the ramp, then stop before he could fly off, leaving the man to ramp off and to his demise...unfortunately, it didn't quite work that well. The man got off a lucky shot at the Commander's brake lines. Unable to slow or stop, Alex was at the mercy of the bike's gas tank. Flying at 150 MPH across a narrow, jagged, spider-webbing canyon was not a good idea, especially when he was thinking of the events in Africa with the stampede at the same time.

Understandably, as the ramp neared closer and closer, he couldn't help but to begin to panic, and he cried out in terror and fear as he felt the bike lift off of the ramp, catching air time as time suddenly slowed to a snail's pace. He watched as the arid, rocky ground below grew closer and closer, and he suddenly adjusted the balance on his bike, hoping to catch a wheelie and land, safely, on the canyon, then he would just ride to the nearby circular arena and circle until he ran out of fuel, or he would jump off if he couldn't turn sharp enough, and risk a broken bone or two for almost sure death.

His plan worked, and he bounced onto the ground, the front wheel rising high into the air as he struggled to stay on. His pursuer was not so lucky, and the Commander could hear the crash and the agonized cries of his fallen enemy over the roar of the engine. What he didn't expect was the massive explosion accompanying the crash. When the bike landed, he suddenly found himself showered in fuel as the engine on his own bike suddenly cut out from the impact of his less-than-graceful landing. He tried to start the shot engine as he heard a damning hiss from behind.

When the engine wouldn't start, his eyes widened, and a horrified look overcame his features as he turned to stare right at the explosion. The blast knocked him off his bike and sent him flying through the air, resulting in a painful collision with the ground that knocked the breath from his lungs.

Gasping for breath, he felt a searing heat on his right side, and he looked around, terrified when he saw nothing but a red-tinted whiteness from his right eye. The pain was intense, and he felt liquid warmth slide down his face, dampening his shirt and staining it red, and running between his fingers, surrounding his head and body. With a final thought of _What just happened?_ he passed out.

Alex groaned as he opened his eyes to see nothing but blackness. _Wh...where am I?_ he thought, _Wh...what's going on?_

He sat up, looking around in fear at the enveloping blackness, he felt claustrophobic, and the pitch black darkness made him, for the first time in his life, fear the dark. He could sense hundreds...no...thousands of creatures hiding just past his line of sight, hungry monsters waiting to sink their teeth into his flesh, drink his blood, to eat him while he still lived. Out of the terrifying darkness, a fragile, elderly woman's voice spoke, one that sounded familiar, but one that, despite the fragility, was like a beacon of blinding, penetrating the darkness like a lighthouse candle penetrates the dark night of the sea, guiding ships to safety and away from the sharp, unliving monsters that live in the bay, hiding beneath the rolling waves, hidden hazards.

The voice spoke louder, and Alex could almost see a glowing yellow light, shaped like a hunched figure, appear in front of him out of nowhere. _Wh...who are you? _he thought, _What is your name?_

"Surely you remember me, Child, don't you?"

"I...I don't know..."

"I am Catala, an angel of the Lord."

"Wh...what are you doing here?"

"To guide you home, out of this unnatural darkness."

"Please, I...I don't want to die...I'm too young."

"Nobody is too young to die, Child, but alas, I am not here to be your reaper."

"Then what _are _you here for?"

"I need to warn you of someone whom you shall meet."

"Warn? Why? Are they bad?"

"He isn't bad, but he doesn't understand power, and you will try to put him into a place of power."

"Who is this person?"

"You already have met him."

"I doubt it..."

"Yes you have...remember..."

"Remember what?"

"Remember the fountain?"

Alex gasped as his eyes widened, and memories of an old nightmare flooded him mind...

_Pain...intense...unimaginable pain..._

_Alex slowly wakes, his heart pounds heavily in his ears. His whole body is sore, hurt, it burns and throbs painfully, and his vision is but a blur. The world is colorless...but the grays, whites, and reds, they are so blindingly sharp. As his vision clears, he sees the carnage that lays before him. Hundreds of bodies, all of his and his unnamed companion's men, strewn everywhere. The fountain, streets, and buildings are in ruins, the ground is a rich combination of blood, mud, and rainwater. Gunshots fills his ears, deafening to his sensitive hearing. Distantly, he can see black silhouettes walking beyond the fountain, pausing every few moments before continuing._

_Survivors...they...they are shooting survivors!_

_Anyone left living is executed, point-blank...and Alex knows that his only hope of survival is to play dead. Two men, directly in front of him, writhe and moan in agony. One of the silhouetted men, appearing to wield an AK47, steps into the fountain, firing an entire clip into each of the injured men. Blood and gore splatters onto the Commander's face, but he remains still, he has to. The man walks around, kicking over corpses, ensuring the dead were just that. Eventually he leaves, and once Alex is sure the executioners are gone, he begins to claw through the mud, his voice, a harsh whisper, calling out the name of his companion, "Spyro..."_

_The companion does not answer, and Alex suddenly begins to fear the worse._

"_Spyro...where...where are you? Spyro! Where...where are you?"_

_And then...he sees him..._

_His companion is a small purple dragon, laying across the fountain, against the wall. His back is to the Commander, and he is laying in a puddle of blood. He is still, unmoving, and Alex, unable to sense anything, doesn't know if he is alive or dead. A sudden pain rips through his body, as if he is being ripped apart, limb from limb. He moans in agony, rolling onto his back, as black circles begin at the outer edges of his vision, growing closer and closer to meeting in the center...an imminent sign of unconsciousness. He struggles to stay conscious, he knows he could die if he passes out...but he can't help it...no matter how hard he tries._

"_Spyro..."_

_Then, darkness..._

"NO!" Alex cried, "Please! Please don't!"

"That is who I am here to warn you about."

"Who? This Spyro character?"

"Aye."

"Why?"

"He will not know how to control his powers, you need to ensure that you don't try to heal him."

"Why?"

"He will drain you."

"I don't...I don't understand..."

"You will, Child, you will."

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Return to your world, and live out until the time comes."

"What time?"

"You will know."

"I don't understand! You speak in riddles!"

"Farewell."

"Wait! Don't go...

...CATALA!" Alex's eyes shot open, and the bright sunlight blinded him. He squinted his eyes, his right side warm and throbbing, no longer hurting. He was surrounded by silhouettes, figures he couldn't make out behind his damaged vision.

Distantly, he could hear muffled voices, frantic in nature and screaming for help. They were panicking, scared, and Alex could only identify one, Piermont.

"Holy...Alex! Alex wake up!"

He could feel the human-form-dragon's strong hands grab his shoulders, sending fresh spikes of pain throughout his body, and he was shaken abruptly.

"Goddammit!" Crash said, "Don't shake him, Pierre! You could do more damage than what is already done! We need a neck brace here, NOW!"

"Oh my God..." Cheet added, "So much blood..."

"Hurry with that neck brace!" Crash hissed, "You there! Get some branches and big leaves, we need to fix him and get him to a hospital, now!"

"There is no hospital for miles!" their host spoke up, "By the time we get there, he might already be dead."

"Dammit..." Crash replied, "Piermont! Help me get him onto the truck."

"Yes sir."

"Wh...what's going on?" Alex said, his voice was weak, hoarse, corpselike.

"Alex!" Piermont cried, "You're okay!"

"Wh...where am I?"

"You're in the canyon, Alex," Cheet said, "You got banged up pretty bad."

"It hurts..."

"Don't move," Crash spoke up, "Trust me."

"I can't see...my right side...it's..."

"Alex, you were caught in an explosion, the entire right side of your body is little more than muscle and bone, don't move, we don't need any more contact points for infection to settle in."

"I've been skinned?"

"Well...yeah. You were set on fire, and the fire burned your skin away before it extinguished, now relax, while I numb this up."

Alex cried out in agony as he felt a stabbing pain on his face, but within seconds, that pain faded into a pleasant numbness. He could feel consciousness sinking away, and he said, "Crash, I..." before he passed out once more.

Alex's eyes opened slowly, and he found that night had fallen. He had been placed inside an isolated room within the ranch, and he was alone. He tried to call for someone, but his voice was hoarse, gone, and all he heard was a whisper. The sedatives Crash had given him had faded away, and fresh pain dominated all other thoughts and feelings. He wanted to cry, but the moment a tear fell from his blinded eye and onto his grotesquely scarred face, his missing cheek, and his melted nose, the pain forced him to try to stop. He couldn't move. Through his one-sided vision, he glanced at his right hand, and was horrified to see that the skin _had _been melted off. All he could see was red-pink muscle against clean, white bone. The sight made him sick to his stomach, and he turned onto his side as he vomited into a trash can at the foot of the bed. Once only bile emerged from his stomach, he leaned back onto his back, risking a look at his arm again.

Once he grew used to the gruesome sight, he was fascinated by just how complex his arm was. He was overcome with the urge to urinate, and he crawled out of bed, struggling to stand. His legs, especially his bandaged right one, shook uneasily and he collapsed again, swearing in fury. Standing again, he saw a trash can in the corner of the room. Written in black Sharpie on a piece of printing paper taped to the metal trash can was the word, 'Toilet'. He chuckled to himself, ignoring the painful protests of his burned body, as he walked unsteadily across the floor and towards the can.

Once he had relieved himself, he stumbled back to bed, falling backwards and passing out again the moment his head touched the pillow.

Alex's eyes opened slowly, and he immediately squeezed them shut once the blinding light of day penetrated the window blinds above his head and shot into his eyes. Although the pain had dulled even more, his head ached fiercely, and he was horrified at the sensation that his head seemed to be filled with water. Every time he turned his head, that liquid feeling rushed to the side turned away, making that side feel heavier than the others. He didn't think it was something he needed to worry about _too _much, perhaps if he was a _normal_, _non-mutated_ human then he might have cause for worry.

However, he wasn't, he was a mutant, had been for almost seven years, his abilities and endurance had been maxed, and he was already stronger than any other human on Earth. He was a force to be reckoned with, tough, impossible to conquer, and he felt disgusted with himself that he ended up bed-ridden, burned all to hell, and in pain.

Even _that_ wasn't entirely true anymore, the pain in his right side had dulled now, only shooting in dull bursts whenever he bumped or nudged his wounds. Relying on something he had taught himself, he limited how much of his 'magic'-for lack of better terms-healed his wounds. He knew that if he allowed himself to fully heal, at least at this point, he _would_ die as his 'magic' was used up, and his body, high on the burst of endorphins launched from the healing, as well as the irritating itch that accompanied a healing, would then drain his own life force to fulfill its deed. Once the healing was finished, his body would then identify that his life force was a wound, and it would try to heal that, the overwhelming amount of signals to heal from his brain would literally cause his vital organs to shut down, ultimately killing him.

The urge to heal was horrible, almost overwhelming, it felt as if he was controlling an imminent orgasm, on the brink but not yet over the edge, and it was hell to control himself, to keep him from giving, from surrendering to the immense pleasure of healing. Yet still, his intelligence trumped his instinctive need for pleasure, and he managed to control his healing, barely, allowing only a continuous trickle of 'magic' to go into the healing...enough so that it healed...slowly...but always allowing more mutated cells to be created than used, so that his 'magic' didn't run dry, and he didn't find his life force sapped.

His biggest concern was when he slept, once he surrendered to the void of sleep, all bets were off, and he would be unable to consciously control the healing. If he wasn't careful...if he didn't learn to unconsciously control the healing, the moment he decided to nap or fall asleep, he would die instantly. It was this major trial that would program his body to heal in a small, controlled fashion without even thinking about it...something he would find very useful later on in life.

Finally pulling himself from his thoughts, he painfully sat up in bed, closing his eyes as the sudden rush and balancing of his liquid head nearly caused him to pass out. Recovering from both the close call as well as the sudden heat flash, he stood, stumbling as his balancing mechanism worked itself out, and slowly began a careful walk towards the oak door to his makeshift bedroom.

Upon his exit from his room and the accompanying hallway, he entered the main living room, finding it empty. Confused, he began a slow, excruciating search of the house, finding it alarmingly empty. _Where in the bloody hell is everybody_? he thought to himself.

"Hello?" his weak voice called out, and he was disgusted at the sound. He was the Great Commander of the Terminator Militia! The leader, the founder! He was supposed to set an example for his subordinates! To be tough! To _not_ submit to pain and discomfort! Yet here he was, a shell of his former self, crippled, burned, in pain...no.

He couldn't think that way, he had a responsibility. Regardless of the pain he was suffering, of the horrible discomfort and that damned itch, he had to maintain his image, at least in public. At the thought of the public, his thoughts suddenly shifted to a minute detail he didn't originally think of, one that made him breathe a sigh of relief. Although he couldn't show his pain to the general public, it was one hundred percent okay to show it in the presence of his soldiers...if he could ignore the obvious blow to his dignity. He knew that each one of Alpha Company could feel what he felt. It was the mutation serum at its best. They shared emotions...the most powerful of emotions...they shared hatred, fury, passion, and depression...they also shared pain.

He suddenly remembered back, way back, in October of 2002, in an old, rundown prison that had been renovated into an LKA base...he remembered a hellish week in which he, his protege Cheet, and his second-in-command Rapid, were tortured ruthlessly. He remembered that he felt the pain of all three combined, and that was much worse than the individual wounds inflicted on him. The only difference was that the pain, although shared, was little more than a phantom. Whenever pain was dealt on one of his comrades, and he felt it, there was no physical damage done to him, only a spike of pain that came and went almost instantaneously, pain that he could easily compare to the 'brain freeze' accompanying a quick consumption of cold goods.

However, what if the pain was ongoing? What if, instead of bullet wound, or a stab wound, it was a continuous, constant stream of steady pain, such as his burns? This wasn't a gunshot, or a stab, it was a severe burn, one that the pain was not quick before it vanished with the healing of a small injury. This was a major injury, one that was, even now, _still _being dealt upon him. He knew that it could take years for his burns to vanish, and even then, there would still be some minor scarring, even if the worst scars were registered by his body as injuries and healed. Christ knows that acne was registered as injuries, and that was why all of his team had picture-perfect complexion.

But how long? How long would he have to feel this pain? Endure this torment? The pain he felt was worse than any he had felt before, even trumping his week of torture.

No...he shook his head, he couldn't think such things. He needed to stick to his philosophy, don't think of the past or future, just concentrate on the present. Eventually, his wounds would heal. Knowing the _exact _time would do little to help him, in fact, it would only make things worse. He should treat the knowledge as if it was likely his wounds could heal tomorrow, and they could quite possibly do so, this was alien terrain to the reach of the mutation serum. No one had been dealt such severe wounds before, and so no one knew how the mutation serum would react. It could take three hours to heal, or it could take three years, nobody knew, Alex was the guinea pig for the serum, a role that he was used to by now.

Realizing that he needed to lay these thoughts to rest, at least until he had a good meal and had regrouped with his comrades, he temporarily brushed his thoughts aside and continued his search for his team.

"Holy crap!" Piermont said through a mouthful of food, "This crap's good!"

"Why thank ya," their host began, "Made it myself."

"What is it anyways?" Cheet asked.

"Home-made pancakes, bacon, sausage, and eggs, a true Rancher's breakfast."

"It's freakin' delicious, that's what it is," Piermont said with a nod, shoveling more food into his gaping maw.

"Jesus, don't eat it all at once..." Cherub muttered, looking bemused at her superior and secret crush.

"Screw you," he said, but his words were barely audible, and he flipped her the bird.

Cherub smiled and replied, "You would like that, wouldn't you?"

"Nah, only _you_ would enjoy it."

"You're most certainly right, I wouldn't turn down a pleasuring experience, even if it is from something as disgusting and repulsive as your stake."

Piermont exploded in laughter, "Honey, that ain't a stake, it's a goddamn sword, bitch! URA!" 

Cherub rolled her eyes and shook her head, and Alpha Company struggled to retain laughter.

"Hey, Pierre," the dragoness continued, "Why don't you crawl somewhere and wank yourself?"

Piermont smiled again, "Better yet, why don't I take you somewhere and we could do a little sixty dash nine action? GiggitygiggitygiggityGOO! Or perhaps we could get kinky and go anal. URA!"

"I'd like that, especially the latter," she smiled mischievously.

"Oh I bet you would, darling."

"Hell, I could bone you right here and now as a matter of fact."

"Oh really? Well hell yeah! I'm always one for experimentation... and exhibition...and BDSM."

"Knock it off," Crash said, "Get a room."

"Screw you, Bandicoot, we'll do what we want, when we want."

"Perhaps _you _can, Pierre, you are my superior after all, but Cherub is not, and I say that she can't do that."

"Aw...freaking killjoy."

"Why thank you, I live to please."

"Go to hell."

"You first."

"You're a dick."

"You're a bitch, asshole."

"Ouch, you hurt my feelings."

"Good."

"You bastard."

"Screw you."

"Screw you, too, dumbass."

"STOP!" Cheet exclaimed, alarming the others, "You _all _can go screw yourselves in hell. Now is NOT the time or place for this crap. Take it outside!"

Piermont, cracking his knuckles, said, "Let's do that."

"You're on!" Crash replied, eyes narrowed.

"Oh brother..." Cheet muttered, shaking his head.

"Dammit..." Cherub replied.

As Alex wandered towards the mess hall, he noticed a crowd gathering around outside, among them were his team, the children, and the ranch-hands. Curious as to what was going on and warranted such attention, he shoved his way to the front of the crowd, and was horrified to see Piermont and Crash at opposite ends of a clearly defined, circular arena, carved out of the sand.

"C'mon you bastard!" Piermont hissed, fists raised, "Show me just how much balls you got."

"I'll screw you up, big boy," Crash replied, his voice equally acidic.

"Bring it on, fuzzy!" Piermont charged the bandicoot, fists flying as he landed a lucky shot on Crash's nose. Recovering, Crash countered by punching Piermont in the cheek. The two exchanged blows as the ranch-hands, obviously wanting to break up the fight but not daring to intervene, stared in horror and shock, and Alpha Company, divided down the middle, cheered the duo on.

"What the hell..." Alex whispered to himself beneath his breath, "Hey!" he called, but his voice was drowned out.

"C'MON!" Crash cried out, "IS THAT ALL YOU GOT YOU PISS-POOR PIECE OF SHIT!?"

"Hey!" Alex repeated.

"I'LL KICK YOUR ASS, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Piermont called out in reply.

"HEY!" Alex yelled, his booming voice ringing throughout the empty air, driving everyone silent, "What the _hell _are you doing!?"

"I'm tired of dealing with this son of a bitch!" Piermont cried out.

"And _I'm_ tired of dealing with this whore!"

"Oh you mother..."

"STOP IT! Both of you! Grow up!"

"He started..." Piermont began.

"_BOTH _of you need to freaking _calm down _and _SHUT THE HELL UP_!"

"But..."

"SHUT UP!"

"But I..."

"SHUT UP BEFORE I KNOCK YOU _BOTH _OUT!"

"Hey!" Crash interrupted, "The hell did I..."

"I SAID _SHUT IT_!"

"I didn't..."

Suddenly, Alex removed his pistol from its leather holster at his waist and fired two shots into each of his comrades' legs. The duo instantly collapsed, crying out in pain and surprise, their scuffle forgotten.

"Ow!" Piermont cried out, holding his bleeding the leg, "The hell was _THAT _for!"

"I _told_ you to settled down."

"You didn't say you'd _shoot_ us!"

"SURPRISE!"

Piermont, banging his knee against a barrel by his side, suddenly cried out, "OW! Son of a..."

"Cheet!" Alex demanded.

The cub was at his side instantly, "Yes, Commander?"

"Fix them up, heal them, and tell them to stop being pussies."

Struggling not to laugh, Cheet replied, "Yes, sir."

"Good," then, with a sigh, he said, "I'm going to take a shower," and he left his team for the bathhouse.

Tired, that's all Alex could describe how he felt. Never before could he recall feeling as much exhaustion as he did now. Ever since he had received the gruesome burns all over his body, sleep had been evasive. At most, he had maybe slept two or three hours, but even that was pushing it. Lately, he had begun having hallucinations, horrifying images, things that he wished he could unsee. He was a soldier, had been for years, and the things he saw everywhere he looked terrified him more than any battle he had had in the past.

The rest of Alpha Company was sympathetic, they felt bad for him, he could feel their sympathy, and it personally hurt him. He didn't want them to feel sorry for them. If they hurt with him, while he was only just a bit injured, then what would happen if it came down to the point where he met his fate. Would his death signal the collapse of the Terminator Militia? The fact that he was unable to find the perfect soldier to fill the boots left behind following Rapid's death meant that his demise would mean that there would be no second-in-command. His protégé might take over for him, but despite the fact that Cheet had been by his side for nearly two years now, the young cub could not lead the army. For one, he wasn't being trained for that position, and two, although he was a savant when it came to hand-to-hand combat, he was having a difficult time learning specific skills that were needed. Cheet was by far Alex's longest project; the cub showed great promise, but there was still much to be done before he was ready.

Eventually, the time came where Alex and the rest of his squad were to return home, and they left the ranch, missing their vacation at the same time as they were eager to leave. The vacation, despite the obvious incidents that had occurred, was the most entertaining thing anyone in Alpha Company had done for a long time. Because they were little more than a militia, and had few enemies at the moment, time went by slowly for them, as they had nothing to do. Alex did not know how long it would be before they deployed again, and even though all of them despised being sent out, it at least gave them something to do. Running for your life in the heat of battle was, believe it or not, much more entertaining than sitting at home, watching reruns of some crappy show which could easily be compared to the entertainment gained from watching paint dry, or the grass grow.

As much as they disliked battle, as they complained because they were being forced to fight, the thrill of battle was a taste that everyone enjoyed. And so, as Alpha Company climbed into the back of the wagon, watching as the ranch family waved them goodbye, and the ranch grew farther and farther away, they were understandably saddened and filled with a deep longing. However, all great things come to an end sometime, and once the lights of San Francisco came into their view, they had pretty much gotten over their longing.

While they took the hour long trek through the barren wastelands of the desert, Alex thought about his dream city once more. What would it look like? How big would it be? Where would it be constructed? How long would it take? And who would the residents be…

"What did you think of the little trip?" Cheet asked, abruptly bringing the Commander out of his thoughts.

"What?" Alex asked with a start.

"I said, how did you think of our vacation?"

"It was fine…mostly."

"Right…" Crash began, "How is your head anyways?"

"Hurts like hell, but otherwise, I'm good."

"True pain or just a dull throb."

"The latter."

"Well my friend, I can honestly say that I have no freakin' clue as to how long it will take before you heal."

"Thanks Crash, thanks a lot."

"I'm sorry, but I'm telling the truth. I've never seen anyone with the mutation serum deal with burns as bad as yours."

"Lovely."

"You might need to learn to control your healing. If you can allow a little trickle of 'magic' to heal you at a constant rate, maybe it can clear up faster, but not so fast that you sap your life force."

"Luckily, I have already learned that skill, but thanks for the suggestion anyway."

"You're welcome…I guess."

"Now, time to head home."

"Thank Christ," Piermont replied, but they all knew that deep down, he missed the ranch.


	9. Chapter IX: Cheet's Return

_**Chapter IX**_**:**

**-''Cheet's Return''-**

**-Connorsville, Illinois-**

**-_24 May 2004_-**

**-_2344 Hours_-**

Cheet stood just outside of the house that Alpha Company lived in, staring off towards the east. He was lost in thought, and stared dreamily on, even as the moon began to reach its peak. Unbeknownst to him, Alex stood just inside the house, watching the cheetah cub with a look of confusion, and worry.

At first, he considered revealing himself to the cheetah, and perhaps seeing what was wrong with him, but something told him not to interrupt, and so, relying on his gut feeling, as he had done so many times before, he didn't move, just watched in silence. Piermont appeared behind the Commander, once more in his human form, as he had been doing a lot lately. His unnatural, emerald green eyes, the only sign that he was not a natural human, shared that same look of confusion and worry.

"The hell is he doing?""the dragon asked, "That's all I've seen him do, just stare off as if he's waiting for someone."

Alex shrugged, "Hard telling, then again, I've learned not to delve into the thoughts of my companions, too much anyways."

"I'm amazed you have the balls to _NOT_ try to figure out what's going on…especially after everything with Jazz."

"Piermont, because you are my friend and bonded partner, I'm not gonna do anything but warn you. I strongly suggest you don't speak a word about that bastard to my face…understand?"

"Jesus, I'm sorry, Alex…"

"Apology accepted."

"So, then what _are _we gonna do? Just sit there and watch him daydream?"

Alex shrugged again, "Possibly, something's wrong, and I want to know what is bothering him…but my gut feeling is telling me I shouldn't try to intervene."

"And," Piermont stated, "You _always _follow your gut, regardless of the danger it puts you in."

"Precisely."

"Why?"

"Because, when I don't trust my gut, bad things happen."

"Like-?"

"Many things."

Piermont raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, so perhaps I haven't really gone without trusting my gut feeling…except for one occasion."

"Which is…"

"When I learned that Jazz was acting suspicious, my gut feeling told me to pay more attention to him, to figure out why he was acting strangely."

"And you didn't."

Alex shook his head, "Nope, he was my friend…or so I thought, I couldn't believe a friend could betray me…"

"Some people are like that, Alex. The decision you made was the right one."

"It still doesn't stop the feeling that I could have stopped things before they started."

"You did what you had to do…don't feel bad, Alex."

The Commander bowed his head, remaining silent. "Perhaps…"

After a few moments of awkward silence, Piermont asked, "So, what are you gonna do about our reclusive fur coat?"

Alex glared at Piermont.

"What? What did I say?"

He only shook his head, "I don't know what I'm gonna do about him…I'm gonna give him some time."

"Could he be traitorous or suicidal?"

"I don't think so…at least, things don't _seem _that way, he just seems…sad…not as if he's hiding something."

"Well," the dragon said with a yawn, "Do whatever you want with him, I'm hitting the hay."

"Giving up so soon, Pierre?"

"Yes, it's damn near midnight, and I've been up since first light, I'm tired, goodnight, Alex."

"Goodnight, Piermont."

The two hugged before Piermont left the room, leaving Alex to stare at the cub, wondering what he was thinking about.

A faint land breeze settled over the landing, blowing over the cheetah cub as he continued staring off into the distance. He was homesick, and he had a rather nasty case. However, he kept telling himself that he _was _at home, that Alpha Company were his brothers and sisters, that Alex was his father, but it still did not quell his homesickness, he did not want to show his weakness to the Commander, for fear of what Alex had thought.

So, finally making his decision, he stepped forward in the warm, summer night and sped forward, knowing very well where he wanted to go. Behind, he left a note, explaining his sorrow and regrets for abrupt, unannounced leaving, but he couldn't take the separation anymore. He missed his family. So, he decided that he would return…return to the savannah, return to his real family…return home.

Something roused Alex.

He didn't know what it was, but he sensed that it wasn't harmful, so he got comfortable once again and settled to try and go back to sleep.

Again, that strange feeling as something aroused him from his deep slumber. He suddenly awoke completely, every sense in his body on high alert. Something was wrong. He climbed out of bed, quickly dressing as he rushed outside of his room, checking the other rooms to ensure that his squad was okay. He took a head count, and when he realized that someone was missing, he finally understood what had aroused him…

Cheet was missing.

Quickly, quietly, he shook Piermont awake, who only growled a soft, low grown of annoyance and shifted his position to one more comfortable.

"Dammit Piermont! Wake up!" Alex said, shaking his dragon once again.

Finally, Piermont sat up, stretching and asking, "What the hell is going on?"

"Cheet is missing!"

"What? The hell are you…oh crap! Where is he?"

"I don't know! Get up! We need to go looking for him."

"Should we awaken the others?"

"I wouldn't."

"Okay, okay."

Piermont quickly stood and stretched, and once he was awake, he quietly followed his rider out of the room as they searched the rest of the house for any sign of the missing cheetah. Alex then saw something on the kitchen table, and picking it up, his heart sank as he read Cheet's message, composed of chicken-scratch, and awkward for the cub:

_Alex, Piermont, everybody, I am sorry. I can't do this anymore. I love the Terminators and Alpha Company, and I am glad for everything you have given me, and for all the kindness you have showed me, so please believe me when I say that I'm not doing this because I don't like it here…lately, I've been struck with homesickness, I miss my family and friends, and I want to go back to the Savannah where I belong. Please understand, I don't mean to hurt any of you, but I can't take the loneliness anymore._

_By the time you are reading this, I am already gone, probably on the plane back to my home…calling me and pulling me with supernatural intensity. Maybe someday, if I learn to cope with my homesickness, I will come back to Alpha Company and the rest of the Terminator Militia, but for now…I can't. I'm sorry._

_I will miss you all, and I hope that you don't take my abrupt, unannounced leave of absence as an insult, because I'm not trying to. I hope that you understand why I had to leave, and why I couldn't tell you…some things are just…too personal to talk about._

_Once more, forgive me…_

_Goodbye friends,_

_Love, Cheet_

"Holy crap…" Piermont began, "He's…he's _gone_?"

"I didn't know he was so alone…I guess I should have figured as much."

"What will we do?"

"Follow him."

"What? Are you freakin' kidding me!? He obviously doesn't want us following him! That's why he didn't tell us!"

"Not necessarily…besides, I'm okay with leaving him there if he really wants to, I'm not that much of a heartless bastard, kidnapping someone so young and never allowing him to return to his family…I'm not Plastro."

"So why are we following him then? Explain that to me!"

"Because, I want to apologize…"

"_And_…?"

"And give him one final chance to change his mind. If he decides he wants to say, then I'll be damned if I won't let him stay."

"So…just us or…"

"We might want to bring everyone else, to ensure that they don't freak out as well."

"Even if we leave a cryptic message like Cheet left us?"

"I wouldn't consider it cryptic…"

"So, we're gonna let Alpha Co. tag along?"

"Why the hell not?"

Piermont nodded, "Meh…good point."

While Alex called to see if Cheet's plane had left yet, and hopefully to reserve a seat on it before it left if it hadn't, Piermont set to work on waking the rest of Alpha Company. Within minutes, everyone was up and ready, and Alex returned, hanging up the phone.

"Good news," he said, "Cheet's plane hasn't left yet, I managed to talk the pilot into _discreetly _delaying take-off without arousing suspicion from Cheet, or worrying anyone else on board."

"How can we get on board without him knowing?"

"'Easy."

"I suddenly have a bad feeling…"

"We're lined for a ride in the cargo hold."

"Ah _hell_."

"_But_, it is incredibly cheap, almost nothing, and there is no chance Cheet would know we're there, because he didn't take any luggage."

"Because he can't…"

"Because he didn't want to…"

"Because he's a cheetah?"

"Shut up, Pierre."

"So, are we leaving?"

"Aye."

"When?"

"Right now."

They arrived at the airport half an hour later. Without a word, the stewards and the manager of the airport allowed them through the gates and towards the open ramp into the cargo hold.

"Now listen," he began, "The pilot, copilot, and stewards know that you are stowed away on here, however, we, for obvious reasons, kept that information away from the passengers. Not only are we trying to keep your friend from knowing you're here, but we also don't want the passengers to know that fully-armed soldiers are hiding among their luggage."

"Thank you, so much," Alex said, handing the manager a thick wad of hundred dollar bills. He discreetly tucked it away in his pocket.

"No, thank you, enjoy the trip. The plane stops for refueling in New York before heading out, stopping again in London before finishing arriving in Kenya. During the stops, the staff will feed you and let you out to stretch your legs, use the restroom, etc. And, for a bit of…eh…'incentive', you might get something else as well."

"Thank you," Alex repeated.

"Good luck, and enjoy your little trip, oh, and try not to make _too _much noise."

He closed the bay, and Alpha Company listened as a few muffled words were said. Soon, the voices died, and they could hear the roar as the jet engines started, and they could feel as the plane took off. Once the plane leveled, they realized they were airborne, and they relaxed and slept, hoping that they could pass through Customs without worrying about being caught by the homebound cheetah cub.

"Good news," Piermont began, "Is that I'm pretty damn sure that we can bribe our way through. Let's just hope that none of those Customs dumbasses decide to alert the whole goddamn plane that there are stowaways on board."

"I'm sure," Alex began in a sing-song tone, "That the right amount of money will keep them quiet."

"How much cash do you even have on you?"

Alex then reached into his bag and pulled out a six-inch-thick stack of $100 bills. "Enough," he replied, smiling mischievously, "Now, enough questions before we _do _arouse suspicion. Get some sleep, we're gonna need it."

"What will we do when we get there?"

"We'll talk about that tomorrow, for now, sleep."

Outside, the jet disappeared among the thick, puffy clouds across the dark blue sky.

Alex was awakened by the jet engines of the aircraft as they shut down. He opened his eyes, blinking to activate his night vision and looked around him. The cargo appeared to have been jostled around a bit, and the rest of Alpha Company looked about as tired as he was as they awoke.

"We there?" Piermont asked, stretching and yawning.

Alex was about to speak, but was interrupted by the voice of the pilot coming over the intercom system, "We have had to make an emergency landing, but there is no cause for worry or panic. Please stay in your seats and wait until we are ready for take-off. Thank you."

"What-?" Piermont began, "Emergency landing? The hell are they talking about?"

"I don't know, Pierre," Alex said, finding a comfortable seating position and sitting on a shipping crate, "But whatever it is, I hope we aren't delayed for _too _long. The _good _news, however, is that if we're grounded, so is Cheet."

"The little bastard is a cheetah though; he can outrun all of us."

"Perhaps, but there is several things that are very wrong with your logic."

"Like-?"

Here, Alex raised his gloved right hand and ticked off his list. "A: He is still a cub."

"Okay, I don't think that means a whole lot…"

"B: He can't leave the damn plane."

"I guess you have a point…"

"C: Even if he _could _outrun us, he can't out_fly _us. Especially since you are a goddamn dragon that can fly, at full speed, about, eh, 70, 80 miles per hour?"

"Okay, so I guess…"

"And E:…."

"_OKAY! _Okay, I get the goddamn point!"

"Good."

"So…" Crash began, "What are we supposed to do then? Just sit here and wait for them to let us out?"

"That's the plan," Piermont said.

"Eh…Crash?" Alex queried.

"What?"

"Need I remind you that half of the damn plane doesn't even know we're back here? If the staff all of a sudden decide to leave the plane and open up the cargo hold, what do you think the passengers would think?"

"Ah hell…"

"But wait!" Piermont interrupted, "If they don't leave, how in the hell will they know what is going on?"

"Piermont, the damn cargo door is controlled through hydraulics, trust me, you'd hear the door opening, and most of 'em would know what it is. If there are some who don't, you know very damn well that those who _do _know will blow the whistle on the plane, and not only are _we _screwed, but so are the rest of the plane's staff."

"Damn."

"'Damn' is right, Pierre."

"So, what do we do then?"

"Easy, we play the waiting game."

Several hours went by with no result. The members of Alpha Company were starting to become claustrophobic of their cluttered space, and their air supply was quickly diminishing. Each one, although they would not admit it and would deny it if asked, were becoming afraid that they had been forgotten, and they feared that if and when the plane staff did open up the door, they would find the corpses of several supposedly fictional characters inside.

However, when it became clear that they wouldn't be leaving for quite some time, they were overjoyed to hear the sound of the hydraulic lift systems opening the door. Acting on reflex, the noise, having startled them, drove them into cover, where each member prepared their weapons and trained them on the single entrance.

However, the door fully opened, and blindingly bright sunlight filled the dark room, temporarily blinding them. Once their vision returned, they looked and saw several official-looking men and women enter, looking around. Among them, Alex could see the pilot.

"About time," Piermont, who was crouching beside his rider, hissed, standing up and walking into the open, relieving the cock off of his weapon and switching the safety back on.

"Apologies," the pilot began, "We are very sorry for the inconvenience."

"Are we there?" Alex asked.

"Not at all. Our engines threatened to die on us. We were forced to make an emergency landing out in the middle of the desert, now they won't start."

"Out of fuel?"

"No, something else is wrong."

"Damn, that's just fan-friggin'-tastic," Piermont hissed.

The pilot shrugged, "We're not going anywhere any time soon, so I figured we might as well let you out of there before you suffocate."

"Aww," Alex replied, rather sarcastically, "Thanks for being so considerate."

Without another word, Alpha Company exited the plane and into the eerily silent desert. The ground was dry, baked, and the merciless sun shone brilliantly down upon the cracked Earth.

"Um…I don't think we're in Kansas anymore…" Piermont muttered.

"Shut up, Pierre," Alex answered.

Ignoring his rider, Piermont asked, "So…where exactly are we, because none of this looks familiar."

"In one of the most uninhabitable places on the planet."

"Crap! And you can't even get the goddamn engines running!?"

"I'm sorry, but no."

Alpha Company exchanged worried glances, but said nothing, then, Alex said, "Well, we might as well talk to Cheet, it's not like he can really get away."

"You are wanting to speak to your little companion?"

"Aye."

The pilot nodded, "Okay then, follow me."

Without another sound, Alpha Company walked to the other side of the grounded aircraft, and with a silent prayer, they entered the gaping darkness.

"Alex?" Cheet exclaimed, shooting up as he ran to them, "The hell are you _doing_ here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing," the Commander replied, eyes narrowed.

"I...I..."

"We're listening..." Piermont replied.

"I was homesick okay!?" Cheet replied, looking away, "That's why I'm here, I was afraid you would laugh at me if you found out..."

"For one thing, we wouldn't laugh at you, we _all_ get homesick. For the other, you should have just told us instead of running off."

"I'm sorry..."

"It's okay...but what the hell are we going to do now? The damn plane broke down!"

"Y'know," Piermont said, looking around, "Pretty nice friggin' plane, we should get our own."

Alex glared at his dragon.

"What? I've never been in an airplane before."

"You're a dragon, we don't _need_ a plane."

"C'mon! Bush has Air Force One, what's wrong with our own?"

"Fine, you want one? You can buy it!"

"I just might..."

"Where are you going to get one?"

Piermont smiled mischievously, "Here. This is a plane isn't it?"

"You've lost your friggin' mind."

"C'mon! I think it'd be awesome, riding back home in style!"

"Anyway..." Cheet interrupted, leaving Piermont to continue his rambling, "I probably should have told you that I was going back..."

"It might have been a good idea."

"Well I'm sorry! I didn't know how you would think of me."

"Regardless, you should have told us instead of just running off like that, and now we're stranded out here in the middle of nowhere."

Suddenly, one of the stewards came dashing in, saying, "We figured out the problem..."

"Really? What is it?" and Alex and the rest of Alpha Company, save Piermont and Cheet, followed her outside.

"Looks like something got into our engines..."

Alex peered inside, noticing that feathers were caught in the blades, and blood had splattered on the interior of the turbine. "You don't say."

"What should we do? We're miles away from civilization, and the shortest it would take to get someone out here is around five or six hours! That's depending on how the weather is, and it looks like we're about to get an old fashioned storm...in the desert...how surprising."

"I can _try _to fix it..." Alex replied, "I'm not very knowledgeable about aircraft, but I've learned that tinkering with things...you can figure crap out pretty quickly."

"How old are you?"

"Really? We're going there?"

"How old are you?"

"Ten years old."

"You're _that _young and you are _that _intelligent?"

"Hey! Why are you complaining? If I can get this damn thing fixed, we can be airbound in a few hours."

Suddenly, Piermont dashed outside and said, "Hey, Alex, guess what?"

"What, Pierre?"

"Turns out, this is a privately-owned aircraft running commercial."

"Okay? What does that have to do with anything?"

"The pilot owns it, and he said that if we can get it working again, he'd sell it to us."

"...You didn't really ask him, did you?"

"Of course, I accepted your challenge, and I won. So EAT IT!" and he laughed.

Alex rubbed his temples, "I can't believe it..."

"Hey! What are _you _complaining about? You have the cash don't you?"

"I doubt I have enough to buy a goddamn plane!"

"Well fix this bastard, and we can start doing some renovations once we reach the city that Cheet was heading to."

"Fine! Listen, steward, tell the pilot it will be about...eh...one, two hours, and I'll have this thing as good as new."

"Okay, I guess..." and she ran off.

"Since this is YOUR genius plan, Pierre, you can help me with the repairs."

"Deal, this will be awesome!"

"Yeah, first job, get in there."

"Wait...what?"

"Get in the turbine."

"Have you lost your freaking mind? Those blades are razor-sharp!"

"Yes, but you have longer arms and are smaller than I. A bird went into the turbine, probably screwed up the blades, and now _you _get the honor of climbing in there to dig it out."

"What the hell? I _hate _that idea!"

"Well, you shouldn't have accepted the request to fix the plane in return for acquiring it."

"God dammit!"

"I'm waiting, Pierre. Sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can get back home."

"Goddammit! Fine, I'll do it."

Alex watched, smiling widely as Piermont struggled, and failed, multiple times to get into the turbine. Finally, he managed to get in, only to yell out as he touched the blades.

"Oh, and don't touch the blades, you'll get hurt!"

There was a loud _thunk_ followed by an exclamation of pain and a stream of swears as Piermont hit his head against the inside of the machine, "Thank you, _Captain Obvious!_"

"You're welcome."

"Screw you!"

"Aw, I love you, too."

Alex managed to repair the turbine using borrowed tools from the cargo hold within two hours, and by the time he emerged, giving the pilot the 'okay' to start the plane again, it roared to life, and he smiled in victory. Using his terrakinesis, Alex managed to build a runway across the desert, and as Alpha Company settled down in the craft, it took off. By the time they arrived in town, it was almost two in the afternoon, as the pilot decided to take the craft carefully to avoid damaging Alex's temporary repairs, which included replacing the damaged fan with one made entirely of hardened earth, tempered with the Commander's pyrokinesis. The plane touched down, rolling into the hangar smoothly, and the passengers disembarked.

The pilot accepted the amount of cash that the Commander had on hand, wanting also to remain the craft's pilot, at least back to the states. Since no one on Alpha Company knew how to pilot the craft, the deal was accepted, and the stewards also were allowed to maintain their jobs, following they joined the militia's ranks as the plane would become an important mode of transport for the Terminator Militia.

They accepted the deal, and for the next several hours, Alex went on a little shopping spree with one of the army's credit cards as he totally remodeled the aircraft. The cheap carpeting became beautiful, Victorian-style prints, the walls went from pale white steel, to veneered oak. The standard seating became leather couches placed against the wall. An entertainment center was quickly built from leftover wood, and a flatscreen television had been bought and installed, as well as a DVD/VCR player combination. Surround sound had been installed, connected to a large stereo system. A bar had been built, stockpiled with a variety of goods, and the windows were tinted. To finish the renovations, a fresh coat of camouflage paint had been added. When they returned to the states, they would finish militarizing the vehicle by reducing the cargo hold, adding a bomb bay, and they would add the wing-mounted weapons, as well as the bubble turret below the cockpit. For now, they had just made the aircraft comfortable to stay in.

As night fell upon the world, the plane, dubbed Eagle One, took to the skies, returning to the states. Alex and the rest of Alpha Company fell asleep in the remodeled interior, and Cheet, who couldn't sleep, awoke the Commander.

"What do you want, Cheet?" he complained.

"Listen...about the whole trip..."

"Please, Cheet, I don't want to hear it."

"I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter anymore, what's passed is passed."

"But I still feel..."

"Listen, Cheet, I'm tired, just get some rest, maybe we can talk about this tomorrow?"

Cheet looked away, unhappy, but he submitted, "Okay."

"Okay, good...Goodnight Cheet."

"'Night."

Without another sound, the Commander adjusted his position, and fell asleep again. Cheet returned to the couch where he was to sleep, and as he climbed on, relaxing, the the thought of the past few days haunted him. He felt guilty for running out without so much as a warning, but at the same time, he wished that he would not have been caught, he still hadn't been able to visit his family...he should have asked they visit them while they were still in Africa. Looking outside, he could see the Atlantic Ocean surrounding them for miles and miles, and he sighed. It was too late to go back now. With a final whisper of his apologies to the sleeping Commander, the cheetah cub finally managed to get comfortable, and he fell asleep.

The next morning, the copilot wandered in, "Hello everybody, time to wake up."

Alpha Company stirred, and Piermont mumbled some kind of complaint. "What time is it?" Alex asked.

"0700 Hours."

"7 o' clock? The hell are we waking up for?" Piermont asked.

"We're coming up on the States. We'll be over New York City within a few minutes."

Alpha Company then walked to the windows, watching as the city stretched below them for miles. Alex, as he looked out upon the world, suddenly felt a pained feeling in his gut. There was a dark feeling over the city, but it quickly disappeared.

"Did you feel that?" Piermont whispered.

"Feel what?"

"There's one helluva bad feeling about that city."

"I don't know why..."

"You felt it, though, didn't you?"

"Yes," Alex admitted, "I don't think there is anything happening soon, however."

"Regardless, there _will_ be something big that happens there."

"Hm..." is all Alex said.

"Where are we going exactly?" the pilot asked.

"Connorsville, Illinois."

"Okay, we're on our way...would you like to take the short route, or the scenic route?"

"Depends."

"Scenic route takes flying to a whole new level, but the fuel can be expensive. Short route is more of the direct route, and is cheaper, but not very interesting, mostly you'll just see farm lands."

"Take the scenic route then."

"Okay."

There was a noticeable shift in direction as the aircraft turned towards straight west instead of southwest. Within several minutes, they were out of the city, and into the beautiful mountains. "Jesus..." Piermont said, astounded, "It's beautiful."

"Yes it is," Alex replied.

After an hour over the mountains, a distant city came into view, "Hey..." Alex asked a passing steward, "Where are we?"

"We are over Montana," the steward replied.

"What city is that? It's huge!"

"Oh, that's actually four cities."

"Really?"

"Yep."

"What are they called?"

"I'm not sure actually, I think the locale just calls them the Quad Cities, not to be confused with Illinois' however."

The Commander could spot a sign below, and he using his mutated abilities, enhanced his vision until he could read the sign.

"_Cartoon City – 4 Mi. North_

_Nicktown – 6 Mi. Northeast_

_Juniortown – 5 Mi. Northwest_

_Toon Town – 8 Mi. North_"

_Hm..._ Alex thought to himself, _Seems like these Quad Cities have a bit of a Cartoon fetish?_

He stood then, walking over to the cockpit and knocking, "Pilot?"

The door opened, and the copilot asked, "Yes sir?"

"Can we land over in the Quads?"

"Which one?"

"Cartoon City."

"Pardon?"

"The one closest to us."

"Oh, yes sir."

"Thank you."

There came the nauseating sensation as the aircraft sharply changed direction, and Piermont, complaining asked, "Yo! Alex? What's the deal?"

"We're taking a bit of a detour."

"Where in the hell are we heading off to?"

"Cartoon City."

"What?"

"You'll see."


	10. Chapter X: Cartoon City

_**Chapter X**_**:**

**-''Cartoon City''-**

**-Cartoon City, Montana-**

**-_27 May 2004_**-

_-_**_0815 Hours_**-

"Attention! Unidentified aircraft, identify yourself and state your purpose for being here, over," emerged a voice from the radio.

"This is Eagle One requesting landing, over"

"Cargo?"

"Just passengers."

"10-4, commence landing in Hangar 4B at Anderson Airfield, over and out."

"Affirmative."

The plane landed smoothly on the old, cracked concrete airstrip. As the aircraft rode into the hangar assigned to it, Piermont remarked, "Jesus, this city looks like a dump."

"Possibly, but it is ensconced in mountains..."

"What is your plan, Commander?"

"You'll find out soon enough."

"That's not good enough, Alex," Crash began, "We need to know why you are here. There has to be an underlying reason, because I know you. You wouldn't take detours unless you had a proper reason for taking them."

Alex looked back at the bandicoot, smiling, "Oh, you will find out."

"What's with the secrecy, man?" Sonic asked, "If we're gonna be here, it'd be nice to know why."

"But if you knew, it would spoil the surprise."

"_What _surprise?"

"Ready to disembark," the pilot interrupted, peering in, "We need to leave by nightfall, but other than that, the day is yours. I'm getting paid by the hour, so frankly, I don't care."

"Enjoy yourself, maybe by yourself something nice, just put it on the company credit card," and Alex tossed him one of Alpha Company's credit cards.

"Where will you be heading?" the pilot asked.

"I'm going to see about visiting the mayor."

"Oh..." Piermont began, "_NOW _I know what this is about."

"Hell yeah," Alex replied with a nod.

"What? What is his plan?" the pilot asked.

"He's gonna pursue making this city our capital."

"A capital?"

"Yep."

"Cartoon City—Terminator Capital of the World! I can just see the headlines of what people would say about that."

"One thing's for sure," Sonic replied, "It'll definitely let people know that we're serious about becoming a powerful force."

"Let's just hope that nobody gets the wrong idea about us..." Crash began, "We don't want people thinking that we're some evil superpower intending to enact Marshall Law on hapless US citizens."

"You're forgetting," Alex said, "I don't annex territory...that's what Plastro did, and that's why he didn't get farther than Fort Plastro. We concentrate on building alliances, it makes our acquired territories happier, and it also allows us to gain a good reputation, thus making it easier to acquire new lands and new friends."

"Holy crap!" Piermont exclaimed as they left the darkened hanger into the heart of the city, "This place looks like a damn ghetto!"

Indeed it did. The streets were cracked and buckled, the homes were all standardized apartments, nearly collapsed. Weeds had overgrown, overtaking everything. Somewhere, a dog barked furiously, and the citizens all from old cartoon shows, stared at them from the stoops of their houses.

"And this is one of the nicer parts of town, too," the pilot said from behind them.

"Nicer parts! This place looks like it hasn't had any real government or justice since the dawn of time!"

"It probably hasn't. Nobody is really sure how to run a city of cartoon characters, and even then, they think, 'OH HOW CAN THESE CHARACTERS BE CRUEL!' So there is very little police force, and little government."

"Idiot."

"Exactly."

"Here ya go, Alex," Piermont said, "Acquire this town then spend the rest of your life struggling to restore order and to make this city worth millions of dollars, instead of thousands or ten thousands."

"Definitely a fixer-upper."

"Ha! Understatement of the Century."

"One must wonder what these people are thinking as we're marching down the street..." Simba began, "You can't help but wonder how they feel, seeing armed soldiers on their streets."

"Maybe, this will be the first time of many," Alex said.

"Are you serious about trying to turn this rotting city around?"

"Well I don't know, Pierre. Were you serious about buying that damn plane?"

"Yes..."

"There ya go."

"But buying and renovating a plane is very different from rebuilding a damn city."

"What you fail to realize, Pierre, is that when everything gets down to it, all this...it's the same thing. Fixing a little bit here, fixing a little bit there, tearing down these standardized complexes in place of new and much more aesthetically pleasing homes. Give me a few years, this town will be the crown jewel of the United States, if not the world."

"Good luck talking that retarded mayor into allowing us this project."

"Oh, don't you worry, Pierre. I can be _very _convincing."

"The sad part is, he really is quite convincing and conniving when he wants to be," Sonic said.

They arrived at the city hall, looking every bit as decrepit as the rest of the town. "Apparently," Piermont remarked, "They don't even bother keeping up their own damn office."

"All the easier to acquire this town for our use."

"Good luck, Alex," Sonic said, "You're gonna need it."

As they entered, they were forced through a metal detector. As could be expected, they set it off, and when they were forced to empty their pockets. The security guards were astounded when Alpha Company pulled off all of their weapons, leaving a stack of rifles, knives and swords, and other weapons that was almost too big to squeeze through the conveyor belt.

They went through again, passed, and were patted down before Alex walked to the receptionist and asked, "May I speak with the mayor of this fine town, ma'am."

"Have you an appointment with him?"

"No, ma'am."

"What is your business with him?"

"I have a few...negotiations...that I'd like to discuss with him."

"What 'negotiations'?"

"For his eyes and ears only, I'm afraid."

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you in without an appointment, and right now, he's in a meeting."

"C'mon, now! Surely you can squeeze in a few minutes?"

"I'm afraid not, sir, you will have to leave and come back at a later time...preferably after you've made an appointment."

After a few minutes, Alex shrugged and said, "Okay," and he turned, retrieving his weapons, as he left the courthouse.

"What the hell?" Piermont whispered angrily, "Why did you turn that bitch down so easily?"

"Because, I have another plan."

"What?"

Looking around and confirming that there was no one around, Alex sped into the alley behind the courthouse, Alpha Company in tail.

"What's your plan?" Crash asked.

"This," and he jumped onto the fire escape, pulling himself up as he quickly dashed up several flights and to the top floor. Using his credit card, he unlocked the window, opening it as he slipped inside. Alpha Company followed, and Piermont closed the window behind them as Alex stealthily led them across the top floor. They hid from any workers or bypassers, and moved on, finding themselves at the top of a large rotunda. Quickly glancing around, Alex crawled out of hiding, searching each room until he found his destination.

With a nod at his companions, he backed up, speeding into the door and breaking it open. The sign on the secretary's desk said, "Out to Lunch", but there was something suspicious about the statement, and not just that it was only 8 or 9 in the morning. He then heard the sound of furniture scraping against wood from the closed and locked door to the mayor's office.

Confused, he reached into his pocket, pulling out a paper clip and a screwdriver. Straightening out the paper clip, he pulled out a flashlight shining inside the lock as he use the screwdriver to bend the clip into roughly the same pattern as he saw on the tumblers. Then, inserting the paperclip and the screwdriver into the lock, he worked jiggled the lock, trying to find the proper placement. Finally, he felt it click into the grooves, and he slowly turned the lock. With a loud click, it opened, and he opened the door.

The mayor, oblivious to him, was on the couch, his secretary, clad only in a bra and panties, was giving him a lap dance, and he was smiling. "Oh..." Crash replied from behind Alex.

"What the _hell_?" Piermont whispered beneath his breath.

"Camera, now," Alex replied.

"What?"

"Give me a camera."

Piermont then handed him a digital camera, and Alex, shutting off the flash, quickly snapped photos, he pulled out the memory card, digging it deep into his pocket as he snapped another couple of photos, keeping them on the camera's memory.

"Hey! Who are you?" the mayor suddenly asked, alarmed. "Get out of here! Or I will call security!"

The secretary screamed and quickly covered herself in a light jacket.

"Nah," Alex replied, grinning maliciously, "You won't call security, else your little affair gets out."

"How are you so sure it's an affair, little boy?"

"Easy, you have a ring on your finger, and a turned down picture of which I assume to be your wife."

"Maybe I'm married to this lovely woman."

"Wrong, the picture of your wife is turned down. If this was your wife, you wouldn't hide her picture, it's a sign of guilt."

"Who are you?"

"Someone who's willing to keep your dirty laundry secret...pending you do something for me."

"What?"

Alex then walked towards the desk, slamming his palms down. With a look of sadistic enjoyment, he said, "I want full control over your city."

"What? What do you mean?"

"Simple, you give the city to the Terminator Militia, and this..." Alex pulled out the digital camera, briefly scrolling through the naughty images he had on there, "Will not get out, understand?"

"Are you blackmailing me!? I should have you arrested!"

"Be my guest, but this can and will get out."

"Wrong! If it is confiscated, it will never see the light of day."

"There is a problem though..."

"What?"

"I have your escapades on the camera, on the memory card, AND, as of now...they are officially emailed to one of my companions, who has one helluva high standing in the US Army."

"What!?"

"Yes, so, either do what I say, or you will find these pictures circulating on every newspaper, news channel, tabloid, or magazine around the world, and the Internet as well. And, if things STILL don't seem that bad to you? How unfortunate if the memory card, or a copy, came into the hands of your loving and faithful wife..."

"Fine! Fine! Okay! Please...please just don't tell her!"

"I want full rights to the city."

"Deal! Deal!"

"And..._you _will announce the change of hands to the public."

"Really? Can we just call a verbal agreement good enough?"

"No, because you will then file a lawsuit and claim that our agreement never happened, then I, who will have destroyed the pictures, will have no proof to document that this whole accident occurred. You sign the document, AND you announce the change of hands to the public, and then the crosshairs on your chest vanish, and this little...event...never occurred, _comprede_?"

"He really is being quite fair," Sonic remarked, "I suggest you take his deal."

"Okay...I will."

"Good, as soon as you tell the public that the city has changed hands...spin whatever story you want. That it is to make the city a better place to live, that it is to expand, whatever, just so long as you don't spin it so that we look like bad guys, else the tabloids have another interesting story to investigate..."

"Okay! I'll just say that you are here to help bring the city back to life...it _is _true right? That _is _why you're here?"

"Yes it is, also to make ourselves at home."

"Fine, I'll make the announcement tonight during the 6 o'clock news, then you have free reign to do what you want, tax-free, and without questioning."

"Good boy," Alex then turned, "Alpha Company, let's move out."

A steady stream of "yes sir"s followed as the Commander walked out of the building, returning to where he had entered. He climbed outside, climbing down the fire escape and jumping to the ground, walking away and back to the plane. His phone, on silent and vibrate, suddenly pulsed, and he picked it up. It was a text message from Elliot, "Any luck?" it said.

"Yes," Alex texted back, "The city is ours."

"Man's quite corrupt isn't he?"

"Nonsense, he's just your stereotypical government leader. They always have flings with their secretaries. As long as you hold him in a noose, he'll do whatever you ask him."

"When do we move in?"

"ASAP."

"Sending troops your way, Commander."

"Wait until after 1800 hours...mayor's gonna make a little announcement to the city."

"Yes, sir."

"...And now we go live to City Hall where the mayor of Cartoon City will address the town," the newswoman said.

As the news cameras trained on the podium just outside of City Hall, and the crowd of civilians condensed, the mayor, followed by the young Commander and Piermont, stepped onto the balcony. As the mayor took his place at the podium, Alex stood to his left, and Piermont, in his human-form, stood to his right. The mayor was sweating profusely, breathing heavily, and his limbs were trembling, he really was not comfortable making this speech. Once he okay-ed it though, he no longer issued the orders, complete control over the entire city would be given to the Terminator Militia's High Command, and the rest of Alpha Company. From here, the Terminators would simply move out to the other three of the Quad Cities, building alliances. Needless to say, Alex was _sure _that the mayor would not screw up his speech. If the mayor _did_, however, Alex still had the memory card in his pocket, encased in a bullet-proof case.

Alex didn't think he would have much problem with the locals. He could tell during his first pass through of the city earlier that day that they did not want to live in the squalor they were forced to endure. Once news broke that the Terminators were here to clean up the city, Alex was sure that the locals would quickly accept them. At the same time that he improved the living conditions, he also intended, though he had conveniently left this out of the written agenda he had given the village board, to militarize the zone. Cartoon City would then become the first city to become fully run by the Terminator Militia, and among the first towns to ever be military-ran in the history of the United States of America.

As for the remaining three cities, Alex had taken a precursory glance in the form of a fly-by on Piermont's back. They weren't in nearly as bad shape as Cartoon City, but still hardly livable. If Cartoon City came under possession of the Terminators, surely the other three would...well...at least Nicktown and Toon Town would. The issue with Juniortown was pathetically simple, it was overrun by the more...child-oriented cartoon characters. Meaning, that odds are, the long-disbanded LKA probably still had a tight hold on the village, even if the militia had long since moved out, surely the locale were still sympathizers. If worse came to worse, and Juniortown failed to submit, Alex would let them be, with three of four cities, it was all still good. If, however, the locale of the village decided that the Terminators didn't belong in that general area at all, and decided to stage an uprising, Alex would take drastic measures, and do something that he never wanted to...he would annex them.

"Citizens of Cartoon City," the mayor began nervously, "I...uh...would like to announce a plan that I have been working on for awhile. Now I know that you all have...uh...been forced to live in squalor, and I deeply apologize, but there was a lack of funding, resources, and overall complications. So...eh...today, I am...uh...proud to announce that we managed to strike a deal with a group of strapping young men who are willing to take on the hassle of shining this city up to its full potential. After tonight, I will...uh...hand control of the city over to Great Commander Alex Vaughn and the Terminator Militia, and they will work to build this city to the best that it can be. Once more, I apologize for forcing you to endure this squalor, but now, things will get better, with that I promise you.

"Allow me to present to you, Great Commander Alex Vaughn! Thank you, all, for the requests that you have given, and for giving me a chance to try to bring this lovely town out of the gutter and turn it into a shining jewel."

The crowd remained silent as the mayor stepped away, waving for Alex to take the lead. The Commander nodded, stepping up to the platform, and, as naturally as if he had given the speech a thousands times prior, he said, "Thank you, all, for taking the time out of your busy lives to hear what I must say. As my confidant here already said, from now on, you will no longer have to deal with what you are dealing with now. Starting tonight, my closest friends will move in and begin renovations, I swear to you, on my scout's honor, that by this time next year, you will not recognize Cartoon City. My plan begins here: We will first take care of manicuring the overgrown yards and land, maybe even put in a beautiful park where that broken stone statue is in the center of town. From there, we will tear down all of that standardized housing, instead building brand new structures, more expensive, but still tax-free for you. In exchange for turning Cartoon City into an exclusive living space, we might go so far as to provide your housing free of taxes or rent or mortgage. With your living conditions improved, we will turn to the streets, completely repaving them and making them as good as new, and then, once our needs our met, we will work on turning over the aesthetic value. By 2006 at the latest, this will be among the most beautiful cities on the planet! All I ask, is your cooperation, and your help. You will get paid a soldier's salary for as long as Project: Rejuvenation continues.

"Those who aided in improving the city and actively took part in the revitalization will be given first choice on where to live, and new jobs, which we will establish. Your school system will be improved drastically, and you will receive private school quality for the price of a public school, once more, pending you all agree to make this city exclusive, as in, new citizens will not be allowed to move in without confirmation from the village board, and a majority consensus with the townspeople. We will tear down this city, and rebuild it from the ground up. Are you with me?"

Suddenly, much to the Commander's surprise, as well as the mayor's. The townspeople started clapping, and cheering, and soon, the sound was deafening, and Alex felt warm deep inside at their love and appreciation, and he also felt victorious, not only did they have thousands upon thousands of new allies, but now, they had a capital, and the Terminator Militia continued to expand, as they overcame a new milestone.

"You sure promise a lot," the mayor said, unhappy but accepting of his loss of power, "I hope you can keep it, this town does not deserve an outsider's broken promises."

"You sure have no room to talk. Have you told your wife about your affair yet?"

"Uh...no! No! Remember! Be quiet about that!"

"Right, I seem to have forgotten..."

"Okay, okay, I won't question your motives."

"Good boy, and as your reward, for now anyway, the noose around your neck has mysteriously vanished. However, if you decide to betray us, well, we...I...won't hesitate to string you back up again, _comprende amigo_?"

"Yes, yes, I understand."

"How about this, to ensure that I keep my deal. If my timeline isn't met..."

"What timeline?"

Alex sighed in annoyance, "If, by 31st of December of 2006, 2359 Hours, my promises have not been kept, I will publicly return full control over to you."

The mayor smiled then, "Fine, we have a deal," and he shook on it.

They smiled as a journalist shoved his way to the front of the crowd, snapping a photo of the mayor and the Commander shaking hands. The mayor, however, did not seem happy, but Alex was eager to get started. Once all of this was said and done, he would issue the order to Elliot, who was waiting just outside the city's perimeter with the remainder of Gamma Company. Once the order was issued, the second highest-ranked unit, second only to Alpha Company, would march into town, and overnight, the Terminator Militia would construct a tentative base as they began to breathe life back into this rotting corpse of a city.

After the crowd had broke apart, Alex called, "Elliot, Alex here."

"Go ahead, Commander."

"Start rolling Gamma Company in, the city is ours."

"Yes sir."

On the outskirts of the city, hiding in the seemingly endless forests, the sounds of several hundred Tiger II tanks turning on pierced through the night silence. On the command of Elliot, they started moving forward, infantry surrounding the army of tanks as the Terminator Militia drew closer to the decrepit city.

"_Ura!_" Elliot called, and hundreds of similar cries rang throughout the still night, as the first of the line moved into the empty city streets, behind Gamma Company, a few platoons from Delta Company marched on, wielding the flag of the Terminator Militia-the black script Eagle on a solid red background.

Above, in the skies, Beta Company, the Dragonrider Division of the Terminator Militia, emerged from the cloud cover as they quickly descended, heading towards the center of town, a dilapidated park with a broken stone statue of a horseman, damaged by acid rain, the staging grounds. Alex and the remainder of Alpha Company stood by the statue, watching as the Terminator tanks moved into town square parking, and the infantry ceased their march. "Attention!" Alex called out, his unamplified voice still ringing loud and clear throughout the still, cold night. Clad in a trench coat, he walked along the base of the statue, hands crossed behind his bag, breath coming in clouds, as he addressed his gathered army, "Allies, tonight is a victorious night in the history of the Army of Legend, the Terminator Militia. After some tough negotiations, we managed to acquire this town, as well as the three surrounding cities for whatever we desire. Let's start things off by tearing down this eyesore and beginning construction on the new and improved version of the Quads.

"I have broken down the city into sixteen six-square-mile sectors and we will start with Sector A, improving all the way down to Sector P. Leave _NOTHING _standing when we begin renovations, I want _EVERYTHING _torn down to the ground. Amongst the rubble and debris, we will turn those crappy $20,000 properties into multimillion dollar apartments. We will install brand new parks, and turn this city into the crown jewel of the Terminator Militia, as this _will _be our world headquarters, the capital of the militia. I want soldiers who are not taking part in construction to be on every street corner, and I have already ordered the construction of a number of _Sentinel_ anti-aircraft turrets to be built. Most of Alpha Company will be working on these turrets. Start building a perimeter city wall, barbed wire should be fine, around the city, and start building a base. There is a large township a few miles northeast of here that has since become a complete ghost town, this will become the _Military_ section of town, even though the whole city will become militarized, the Military Sector will hold only residents that are soldiers in the Terminator Militia. It will not only hold barracks, but vehicle garages, production factories, training facilities, BMT camps, the works.

"We have a strict time limit to complete what we've dubbed _Project: Rejuvenation_, the deadline is 31st December 2005 at 2359 Hours. With the abilities that _we _have, I don't think that time limit will be too much of a problem, but I just wanted to pass this information onto you. It is _CRITICAL_ that we complete our mission by that time, if we don't, we lose the city, that's part of our agreement. Because this city is critical to our expansion, and our rise to power, we _MUST_ meet this deadline, achieving what we want even earlier would be better, however, we _MUST NOT_ speed through this project. The city needs to be as good as new, and of the highest quality before the deadline arrives. So, a little piece of advice to you all, do _NOT_ screw this up!

"Your commanding officers have the plans in convenient dossiers for you, don't lose them, and follow them to the T. Once we complete the Military District of Cartoon City, we will begin producing and recruiting new soldiers and weapons, as well as begin serious Research and Development programs. In addition to this, completion of this project enables us to seek to build alliances with the other of the three cities, and if we do, we can absorb the Quads beneath a single banner, and a single name. I have great dreams for this city, I expect you to respect them, and strive to achieve them. So, without further ado, let this new chapter in the history of the Terminator Militia be written...let's get to work, guys."

From the crowd erupted a stream of unified, "_URA!_"s.

Alex smiled as he answered their call with one of his own. "Move out!" the Commander ordered, and the crowd dispersed.

"Wow," Piermont commented, walking to the Commander as the crowd broke apart, "You did one helluva good job. Nice speech."

"Thanks, Pierre, I practiced for awhile."

"Really?"

"Nope, just winged it."

"Hot damn."

"Hell yeah. I don't need a freakin' teleprompter."

Piermont laughed, "Excellent, so, where are we scheduled again?"

"You and I, as well as the majority of Alpha Company, are going to begin building some anti-aircraft turrets. It's a new design, and once Cartoon City has their share, we'll start building in all of our allied cities."

"Starting with?"

"I don't know, Connorsville probably."

"Well..." Piermont began, "Let's get to work then."

"Hell yeah."

"Where are we starting?"

"Didn't you listen to my rant?"

"Kinda..."

"We're starting in Sector A."

"Ah, naturally."

"C'mon, enough wasting time, we're on a strict time limit."

"Yep, onward to battle!"

"Sir, yes sir!"

Alex and Piermont flew out over a field, and the Commander turned to his dragon, "Land here," he said.

With a roar, Piermont landed, the backdraft from his wings sending columns of dust and sand shooting into the air. "Let's get to work," Piermont roared.

Alex leaped off, and using his terrakinesis, worked on digging a massive, hundred-foot-deep, cylindrical hole. After the hole had been dug out, Alex and Piermont leaped down, quickly tamping the ground as the first trucks carting concrete arrived. As the moon slowly began to sink, the hole's floor and walls had been covered with concrete. Utilizing his pyrokinesis, Alex managed to dry the concrete faster. Steel girders arrived next, and the elevator shaft was quickly constructed. Leaving a crater in the center of the floor, they laid ceramic tile down as Piermont began to construct a small tunnel leading away from the crater...the barracks. This floor was also covered in ceramic tile, and by the time Piermont returned, steel plates had been installed along the tunnel ceiling. Using his treasured telegenesis ability-the ability to create things by just imagining their existence, Alex was able to build the automated gun, as well as the computer terminals. The hole was then capped with a twenty foot-thick layer of concrete that stuck out ten feet above ground. The silo-shaped room was covered in steel paneling, and the gun's hydraulic lifts were tested, they worked.

Above ground, the elevator was covered by a steel, chain link gate, and was controlled by a small lever. The access room to the internal workings of the elevator was built in the silo, and a concrete bunker that controlled the gun, as well as everything else down in the Sentinel, was quickly erected. By the time dawn broke, Alex and Piermont had completed the Sentinel turret, as had the rest of Alpha Company, who had dispersed across the city to erect the fully automated anti-aircraft weapons. As the Commander and his dragon admired their handiwork, Piermont turned to Alex and said, "And the best part is, the whole damn system is safe from EMPs."

"Aye," Alex replied with a nod, "C'mon, let's check the rest of the teams."

Overnight, the ghost town that would become the Military District, as well as three-fourths of Sector A had been bulldozed to the ground. Unfortunately, because they weren't blessed with the extraordinary powers that Alpha Company had, these groups worked at a much slower pace, and there was still much to do. However, Alex was sure that they could make their deadline, he had actually negotiated it as a worse case scenario. At the pace they worked, they could have the city entirely built before December 31st of that very year.

Even if the other companies, those _not _mutated, fell behind, Alpha Company could move it to take up the slack, and with their telegenesis ability, the one that only Alex was allowed to use, as only he fully understood the need to imagine every little detail, every screw, every bolt, every wire, he could have the city constructed within a year and a half, just by himself. "Okay," the Commander sad, "C'mon Piermont, let's head over to the perimeter, see how our walls are doing."

"Yes, sir," Piermont replied, and turned a hairpin curve.

He landed smoothly just outside the city, only three miles of fence post had been laid, so that would take awhile, but once more, at this rate, it could be built around the 100 square mile city by the time the deadline arrived.

"Excellent..." Alex said, as they emerged over the Military District, "Everything is going according to plan, Pierre. This city will be completely rebuilt in no time. Awesome, then let's see if people still think of this as a boy's dream. We're officially our own army now, and we now have the capital city to prove it."

"How can you be so sure that we won't be attacked by any enemy forces?"

"I can't be so sure, but they will second guess before they challenge the Terminator Militia, don't worry, Pierre, everything will work out in the end."

"I'm excited."

"Me too, Pierre, me too."

Without another sound, they turned around, and continued on with their inspection of the city.

Piermont and Alex stood alone together on top of the city hall of Cartoon City, looking over all that they had done. In less than a month, they, along with the rest of Alpha Company, had completely rebuilt the city, bringing it from the ghetto that it once was, and rising it into the start of a military megametropolis. With Cartoon City successful and almost fully under their control, their next target was the other of the Quads-Toontown, Nicktown, and the troublesome Juniortown. Already the latter of the three was showing signs of rebellion, and it was only worsened by the fact that the military district of the city was neighbors with Juniortown.

"So, Alex, the hell are we gonna do now?"

"Easy, Piermont," he replied, "We move on to the next on our list."

"You think they'll try to find a way to stop our advance?"

"I don't care if they try, they won't get far."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Think about it, Pierre, if they're staring into the face of several thousand AK47s and Tiger II's...well...talk about convincing."

"I gotta admit, we're making one helluva statement here."

"Yup."

_-_**_01 January 2005_**-

-**_0018 Hours_**-

The Terminator Militia, having spent the past six months finalizing construction on the newly rebuilt Cartoon City, decided to take the week off, relaxing in a local hotel after renting the penthouse floor. Alex and Cheet spent this time training, as the cheetah cub was nearing the end of his apprenticeship, and his childhood.

Alex himself was maturing quickly, and he found it hard to believe that 2004, a time of great change and evolution in the Terminator Militia was already over. He, along with the rest of his comrades, welcomed the New Year with a toast. "I'm so proud of you all!" Alex began, addressing the Mutant Division, "We've done a helluva lot since this day back in 2004, and we are _still _growing at an exponential rate. So don't think we can slack off now, we need to ride it all the way to the end. We've done a lot, but there is still so much to do before the world is ready to accept the _full _potential that our army has to offer. In addition to this, I would like to make a final note...I am proud to announce that as of yesterday, 31st December 2004, at 1818 Hours, Sergeant First Class Cheet has completed his apprenticeship, and is now a full-blooded member of Alpha Company and the Terminator Militia!"

Alpha Company cheered for the cub, who looked shyly away, appreciating the attention, but also feeling humbled.

"Congratulations, Sarge," Alex continued, "And a happy New Year!"

"URA!" they all cried, and they clinked their glasses as they downed their drinks.

"Now!" he continued, slamming the glass down onto the table, hard enough to shatter it, "Let's keep up our streak!"

"_URA_!" they repeated.

Alex and Cheet wandered the streets of Cartoon City soon after the toast, having been assigned to patrol that night. Above, they watched as numerous citizens decided to hold private fireworks shows in celebration of the new year. "So," Cheet began, "What's next for us?"

"If by 'next for us', you mean next for your training...then nothing, you're finished, my friend. Which means that I'm in the market for a new protege, and even though we're expanding faster than ever before, Alpha Company hasn't seen a new member since you joined back in '02."

"Hey, I'm sure you'll find somebody soon..."

"Thanks, I appreciate the compliment..."

"Y'know, especially considering that we have this whole city now under our control."

"Good point...but nobody has stuck their heads out yet."

"They'll come out eventually."

"Why are you limping?" Alex asked, suddenly noticing that Cheet was stepping heavily on his right forepaw.

"Eh...ol' paw ain't what it used to be since the stampede."

"Oh..." and Alex looked down at his leg, much the same way.

"Now every time it rains, arthritis throws a fit."

"Yeah...I know what you mean..."

"Anyway, any new missions?"

"Unfortunately, no...all I know is that Juniortown has been...less than satisfied with our sudden arrival."

"Of course they would be, the whole damn city is infected with LKA and LKA sympathizers, our best bet is to just go in there and waste 'em."

"I will if they try anything, but right now, they're all bark and no bite, and I'm an advocate for freedom of speech. They don't like us? So what, as long as they don't go on the offensive, I have nothing against them."

"Christ, I wish I was you."

"I have to find a way to control my...nuisances. That was Plastro's downfall, he couldn't help himself."

"You really don't want to end up like Plastro, do you?"

"No I don't, primarily because no good will actually come out of it in the end."

"I guess you have a point."

"Hold it..." Alex ordered, pausing in his tracks.

"What's wrong?"

"Quiet! I heard something!"

"What?"

"Follow me," he whispered. Gun cocked, loaded, and raised, Alex slowly walked towards the alley where he had heard the noise. As he stepped into the darkness, he heard the bang of a metal garbage can lid smashing into the can, an a scraggly-furred tomcat rushed out from the alley, startling both of them as it ran on down the street.

Cheet chuckled, "Hilarious, look at us, two big bad soldiers, getting the living crap scared out of us by some horny-ass cat."

"Especially since _one _of the 'big bad soldiers', is a friggin' cat himself."

"Hey! I ain't a cat," Cheet snapped, then, nodding, "I'm a cheetah."

"Bah! Same damn thing."

"I beg to differ."

Suddenly, a shot rang out through the air, and Alex immediately felt dazed and lightheaded as he hit the ground, alarmed to find that he was paralyzed. He watched, unable to do anything, as three cloaked figures surrounded Cheet. The cheetah attempted to fight them off, but they were no match for him, and before he had finally managed to kill one of them, dozens of tranquilizers darts were stuck in his body.

Still, the cheetah struggled to fend off their attackers, but their assailants continued to shoot him full of tranquilizers. Finally, the cheetah's movements became slower and more clumsy, and he fell forward, laying on his side, breathing heavily. The men surrounded them, and Alex watched, unable to do anything, as Cheet was taken away. He tried to fight back, but one of them kicked him in the head, and the lights of consciousness winked out.


	11. Chapter XI: The LKA Uprising

_**Chapter XI**_**:**

**-''The LKA Uprising''-**

**-Cartoon City, Montana**-

-_**02 January 2005**_-

-_**0718 Hours**_-

Alex awoke, dazed, his senses were still slow, and he felt sick to his stomach. Slowly, he stood, waiting until his balance had recovered before he fully stood up. The sun was rising, peaking over the tops of the brand new skyscrapers, and when he looked up towards the sky, the sudden blast of light assaulted his eyes, forcing him to quickly shield his eyes and cry out. After several minutes, and once his senses began to return to him, he was suddenly overwhelmed with memories of the previous night, and one question came to his mind...

_Where's Cheet?_

Cheet slowly awoke, groaning. His limbs felt like dead weights, and he was sprawled out on his side in a very uncomfortable position. He tried to move, to readjust his painful position, but he found that every muscle in his body was paralyzed and wouldn't listen. He began to panic, fearing that he would never move again, and then the reality of where he was and what had happened struck him like a speeding car into a brick wall. All he remembered was that he and Alex were on patrol, and they had been ambushed by between three and five cloaked assailants. Looking around, he could barely see, and it didn't take him long to realize that he was in a pet carrying cage. Around him, he was surrounded by more of those carrying cases, some were full with some of the most exotic and beautiful animals in the world, including several big cats. The rest were empty, the empty cages marked by wide open cage doors.

"Hey!" he called to a Bengal tiger cub that was sleeping beside him, "Where in the hell am I?"

The cub sleepily sat up, yawning and opening its eyes, cocking its head at him.

"Where am I?" Cheet repeated.

The cub meowed at him before curling and falling back asleep again.

_Oh great! _Cheet thought, THOSE _kinds of cats_, and he groaned, falling to his side again. His whole body ached and burned including his arthritic paw. He was tired, sore, and extremely hungry and thirsty. Walking on the thin line between consciousness and sleep, he was startled awake by the sound of a squeaky metal door opened, and he abruptly sat up, gasping as he saw a man in a veterinarian's uniform wheel a cart into the storage room. The cart was covered in food bowls, all with food that appeared to have been specially selected and metered out. Cheet managed to look through air holes punched into the back wall of his cage, seeing frosted-over windows behind him, blocked out by the endless stacks of crates and giving the small, claustrophobic room a very dim light. The man stopped at his cage, fishing around the cart, and Cheet prepared for when the man opened the cage, fully intending to bust out and run for it. However, the man revealed a long syringe, carefully sticking it through the bars. Cheet, realizing what was going on, leaped onto his feet and pressed himself into the back corner of his cage, hissing and growling at the man.

"Ah, ah, ah! I wouldn't do that if I were you..." and he wagged a finger at the cheetah, chuckling as he walked around to the opposite side of the cage. Cheet suddenly felt a pinching sensation as more of that numbness filled his body and his muscles refused to listen. He collapsed to the ground, watching, paralyzed, as the man returned to the front of the cage, opening it and sliding in the food bowl. For a few minutes, he stood there, in front of the open cage, looking at Cheet curiously, "Look at that...already you have a glorious sheen," and he chuckled again, "You will make a fine coat," before he closed the cage, chuckling as he walked away.

"Come back here you piece of crap!" Cheet howled.

The man paused in his tracks, quickly running back to the cage and staring, astounded, at the cheetah, "You can _talk_!?" 

"You're damn right I can talk! Now let me out before I'm forced to slice and dice your sorry ass!"

"A talking cheetah...I can make millions!"

"How about this, either you let me out, or I will sic the Commander on you. Alex _will _find me, and when he does, he'll rip you apart without a second thought, just like he does to everybody else who screws with his soldiers."

"Aww! How adorable!"

"Screw you!"

"So mouthy, though. Oh well, if worse comes to worse, you will still make a fine coat," and the poacher left again, closing and locking the door behind him.

"Hey!" Cheet yelled, "Hey! Retard! Come back here you cowardly chickenshit! I ain't finished with you yet!"

"What the hell happened again?" Piermont asked.

"Cheet and I were patrolling," Alex began, "When we were ambushed."

"And he was kidnapped?"

"Yes."

"Any idea who they were?"

"Not a clue, else I would already have them by the throat."

"Any idea of where they went?"

"I was sedated, tranquilized, knocked unconscious, of course I don't have a freakin' clue as to where they went!"

"Well, I'm sorry, but we can't really do anything without a place to start..."

"I don't understand..." Alex replied, pacing, "Why would they make off with Cheet and not me? I mean, if they were against the Terminator Militia, you would think they would go after the Great Commander, instead of the Commander's former protege..."

"You would think...unless they somehow mistook him for you."

Alex feigned a laugh, "Yeah, I'm sure they did...of course they wouldn't!"

Piermont shrugged, "Hey, there's a lot of idiots out there...can you feel him?"

"No, that's the thing I'm worried about."

"I'm sure he's fine...for now."

"I wish I shared your optimism, Pierre, but I know that people are so messed up, that anything could have become of him by this point, he's been missing for about ten hours now."

"He can't be far..."

"I guess that's _one _thing..."

"Should we lock down the city?"

"I'll issue the order, get some searching parties together, send them out to look for Cheet, or for any clues leading to them."

"What should I tell them to do once they find his kidnappers?"

"Ordered an S.O.S on them."

"S.O.S?"

"Shoot on sight. No questions asked. I will make sure that the world knows not to screw with my men. If that means dropping a few bodies, then I'm more than happy to oblige."

"Amen!" Piermont roared.

"Let's get on with it, then."

-**Unknown Location**-

-_**02 January 2005**_**-**

**-_1630 Hours_-**

"...You will be so impressed, Colonel!" the veterinarian's voice began, rousing Cheet from his nap. He sat up, stretching.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes I am, Colonel Vaughn."

Cheet's ears pricked up at the mention of the colonel's last name, _Alex?_ He thought.

"Ha!" Cheet roared, "I told you, ya squirrely bastard! I _told _you that Alex wouldn't leave me here for very long!"

"Is that him?" a voice, definitely not Alex's and sounding much younger, replied.

"Yes, it is," the vet replied excitedly, "A perfect experiment for you!"

Cheet, preparing to attack, growled and hissed as the vet crouched down in front of his cage, beckoning the unseen character over to him. Cheet was suddenly alarmed as a boy, about five years Alex's junior, crouched down beside him. The boy had short, blonde hair, wild blue eyes, and was wearing a tan leather jacket with the insignia for Lieutenant Colonel on his breast.

"Hmm...he looks familiar...where did you find him?" the boy asked.

"Captured him from the streets of Cartoon City, Montana."

"Of course..."

"You know?"

"Yes, unfortunately, I do, the Terminator Militia is establishing a base of operations there...my idiot older brother is leading them.

_Brother!_ Cheet began, jaw dropping, _Alex has a...a _brother_?_

"Wait..." the vet began, "You are Alex Vaughn's _brother_?"

"Nicholas Vaughn, and yes I am."

The vet suddenly sounded mistrustful, "So you're on _their _side then."

"Not at all."

"Then what are you then?"

"Me? Why, I'm only the one who volunteered to continue General Roberts' dream."

"You...you're LKA!?" Cheet exclaimed, hissing.

"So you _can_ talk...I figured it was _you_, Sergeant Cheet...or is it Lieutenant now? My brother's ranking system confuses me."

"Burn in hell!" Cheet hissed, "And let me go while you're at it!"

"Nonsense! I have a much better plan...Captain!"

"Yes, Colonel?" an unfamiliar voice replied, and Cheet watched as an odd looking man, wearing a purple shirt with a white target painted on walked up to the colonel. The man's ears were almost rabbit like in nature, he had no arms or legs, instead, white gloves for hands that seemed to levitate, and yellow sneakers in place of feet.

"Captain Rayman, do me a favor and talk our friend here into a decent price for the cub."

"Two million, cash," the vet began.

"Too high, I'll give you two grand."

"One million, take it or leave it."

"I'll give you five grand."

"I want a million."

Nicholas thought about it for a few moments before saying, "Half it, and we have a deal."

"Fine."

"Excellent! Rayman, take him to our helicopter outside, I'll pay the good man."

"Yes, sir," the captain replied with a salute, and Cheet felt himself lifted as he was carried across the storage room, into a veterinarian's office, and outside onto a beautiful waterfront and beach. However, the view was short-lived, because he was immediately taken around the building and to a helipad on the back porch. The helipad overlooked a forest of palm trees on the bottom of the hill that the vet office was built upon. In the distance, Cheet could make out the skyscrapers of Cartoon City, several miles ahead. His cage was then forcefully thrown into the back of the helicopter, and after an unknown amount of time, the cheetah felt the helicopter rise into the air and take off. "Where are we headed, Colonel?" the captain asked.

"Fort Schmerzen."

"Yes, sir, setting course for the Ardennes Forest," and the helicopter headed towards the east.

The helicopter, as black as night, landed in the snowy helipad outside of the train station that connected to an old German WWII fortress known as 'Fort Schmerzen'. Upon their landing, Cheet's cage was forcefully thrown out of the helicopter, placed onto a waiting dolly, and he was wheeled out of the bitter cold, snowy forest and into the heating of an old train station. The cheetah watched as several men, all appearing to be of higher rank, waited in the heart of the room for his captors. As soon as Alex's brother entered, standing beside the cub's cage, one of the men, a major, walked to the new leader of the LKA. "Hello, Colonel," the man replied in a thick German accent, "Who do we have here?"

"Cheet, one of the members of Alpha Company, and Alex's current protege."

"Excellent," and the man, smelling strongly of vodka, crouched down beside the cheetah's cage, peering in, "Hm...you are taking him to Fort Schmerzen, yes?"

"Yes we are."

"That's good...maybe we can lure the Commander out of his rat hole, Frederik! Take him to the train."

"Yes, sir," another, hulking man, a captain, replied, picking up Cheet's cage and carrying it across the small station and outside, back into the bitter cold wind. This lot of the station was surrounded in a tall, chain link fence, topped off with barbed wire. The train, an old military train, waited on the edge of the lot beyond the fence, idling as smoke poured into the air from the old steam's single smokestack.

"Commander," Elliot called on the radio, "I think we have a hit on Cheet's location."

"Really?" Alex replied, signaling for Piermont to land. The forest dragon landed on the top of a nearby skyscraper, roaring as Alex slid off and asked, "Where is he, General?"

"It'd odd...but we spotted a black helicopter, of unknown origin, leave Juniortown yesterday afternoon."

"Are we sure that it is Cheet?"

"Well, the identifying marks that we _could _make out on the video footage appear to be former LKA marks."

"So an old LKA gunship?"

"Precisely."

"Still, that isn't enough proof that it's Cheet...but send someone out to follow it, or at least try to locate where it went off to."

"Way ahead of you, Commander. One of our guys has been following it since about an hour after it took off. He just called back to us, informing us that he spotted it in the heart of the Ardennes Forest."

"Isn't that in Germany, or Belgium, or somewhere along those lines?"

"Yes it is. The heli landed outside of an old defunct train station used by the Nazis during WWII, it is directly connected to, I think seven, old WWII fortresses...all of which are in use. But the identities of who is actually using them is disclosed, and the German Parliament refuses to negotiate with us...they think we're terrorists."

"Of course they do..." and Alex sighed, "So what do we do?"

"The only thing we _can _do, Commander. We're gonna have to send Alpha Company out to Europe to do a little...exploration."

"So what you're saying, is that you need us to go in there, infiltrate each one of the forts, and try to figure out which one may or may not hold our little cub?"

"Precisely."

"We're on our way..."

"Good, over and out."

"What was that all about?" Piermont asked.

"It seems we're going on a little European vacation."

"D...D...Damn it! W...W...What purpose c...could this p...p...possibly serve?" Cheet hissed, shivering.

"Nothing at all," Colonel Vaughn replied, "This is just too much fun!" and he threw another bucket of water onto the cheetah, laughing as he reentered the building and shut the door. Cheet was locked in a pen outside of the fortress, enclosed by fifteen foot tall barbed wire fences. A snowy forest surrounded him, and snow slowly drifted down from the heavens. Hungry, he walked to his food bowl that he had been given, seeing that the large chunk of hamburger in his bowl was frozen solid. Swearing, he walked over to a small cluster of snow-covered crates, curling up into a tight ball against them, using them as windbreakers, dripping wet with cold water, freezing to death out here. Already he believed that he had hypothermia, and he was so far from home, that he didn't know if Alex could get here in time to save him before he froze to death.

"A...A...Alex..." he whimpered sadly, trembling uncontrollably in the cold, "P...P...Please hurry..."

Alpha Company emerged several miles outside of the train station that they had been informed about. Piermont quickly searched for a place to land, landing in a small clearing deep within the snowing forest. There were several flashes of brilliant blue light behind them, and in the blink of an eye the rest of Alpha Company appeared, all trembling and complaining about the cold.

"Here's the deal..." Alex began, there's an abandoned train station a few miles north of our current position, we need to get there and see if we can find any clue as to Cheet's whereabouts."

"Are you sure he's all the way out here?" Crash asked, watching his breath coming in clouds, "I mean...we're a _long _way from home, Alex."

"I know...but Elliot strongly believes that he's out here somewhere, and Elliot's gut has yet to prove us wrong."

"Only because his 'gut' is backed by hard facts...we can die out here, Alex! If not from any enemy snipers or patrols, then from the freaking cold! Hypothermia kills, Commander!"

"I'm well aware...which is why we need to hurry. I doubt that they're giving Cheet warm and cozy quarters. We need to find him before he dies."

"There's hundreds of German fortresses scattered throughout the continent! Even _if _Cheet is in one of them, Christ knows which one. We could be searching for years!"

"Well, we can't do that now, can we? The pursuer that Elliot sent after the decommissioned LKA chopper ended up out here. This station is connected to seven known Nazi fortresses...all still in use. Cheet could be in any of them, that's why we're here, to covertly scout out each and every one of them until we find the metaphorical needle in the haystack."

"The metaphor is an example of what I'm talking about, Commander! We're technically spying on their government, I mean, that's an act of war!"

"If we're caught."

"The Terminator Militia might be growing fast, but if we're caught, we don't stand a chance against Germany and whatever allies they have."

"That's why we should be extra careful, but extra thorough, in our search."

"There's no stopping you, is there?"

"Nope."

"Of course!"

"Now, enough bitching, Crash, we're wasting daylight, and minutes from Cheet's life."

For several hours, they wandered the dark, seemingly endless forest evading patrols, both German and LKA, arriving in a small town. They crept around the village, avoiding everybody as they went through town, reentering the forest again. Less than an hour after they left the village, they arrived at the compound that surrounded the station.

"Jesus..." Piermont began, looking through his binoculars, "The place is crawling with Germans and LKA..."

"You think Germany knows how bad the LKA really is?" Crash asked.

"I doubt it," Alex replied, "The LKA probably convinced them that they were good guys and that _we _were bad guys."

"Crap...so what's your plan?"

"At this point," the Commander began, "Judging by the heavy activity in and around the complex, we might have no choice but to engage a few of them...just keep the body count minimal please. We don't need to start an international incident that could further halt our progress."

"Is your progress all you care about?" Crash asked.

"Not at all, I also care about the safety of my team, hence why we're here. Now, enough of the interrogations, let's get a move on already!" and Alex emerged from cover, sprinting towards the entrance gate into the compound.

The rest of Alpha Company followed his example, until only Crash remained. The bandicoot shook his head, saying, "Unbelievable, he's as stubborn as a mule!" before he too emerged from cover and dashed towards the compound.

Alex scaled the fence, leaping into the perimeter and immediately diving for cover behind a nearby storage container. The rest of his unit were soon beside him. "So what's the battle plan?" Piermont asked.

"Still thinking on that..." Alex replied with a frown.

"Might want to hurry, man. Patrols everywhere, and we're practically sitting ducks...plus it's cold as hell out here. If we don't freeze to death, Cheet surely will, cause I highly doubt he's being treated to a nice bed and a hot meal."

Several moments passed, and Alex suddenly clicked towards his unit, "Got an idea..."

"Care to share?" Piermont asked, rapidly rubbing his hands together.

The Commander nodded towards the station entrance, where two LKA officers, judging by their uniforms, were chatting, "Maybe we can find a way to get the information on Cheet's whereabouts from them, or my Plan B is to take a uniform and ask around...one of 'em's bound to work."

"Man, I doubt half the guys here even know the LKA have Cheet, if an officer walks around and starts asking about his whereabouts, it's gonna get suspicious. Knowing the LKA's routines, with such a high priority target like Cheet, I'd think the higher-ups would be weary to disclose that information to grunts."

Alex shrugged, "Plan C is to shoot the place up and demand information, then hope and pray that the LKA don't raise an alarm with their base."

"Here's an idea," Crash began, "Is there a communications tower nearby we can sabotage to keep them from contacting their home base?"

"Crash, this isn't 1945 anymore, they're probably using cell phones and the Internet to stay connected, probably satellite phones, which means that unless an EMP knocks the entire country off the grid, we can't sever contact."

Suddenly, Alex's radio buzzed, and he answered the call, "Vaughn here."

"Commander, this is Elliot, got something you might find interesting."

"What is it?"

"I was running some background searches on the fortresses in the vicinity...although all the fortresses are still operational, one particular fortress sent a distress signal a year or two ago, but after they dispatched soldiers to the location, they claimed it was a 'false alarm'. However, the fort hasn't been keeping up with the usual paperwork that the others are or are filing the reports differently than the others. Better yet, found one name that sticks out that ties to the LKA under 'No-Tongue'...Johnathan Hendricks."

"What fortress is it? Just spit it out already!"

"Well you don't need to be an ass, Vaughn," Elliot spat, "But the base is Fort Schmerzen."

"Schmerzen?" Alex exclaimed.

"Yeah, that's right."

"I think I remember...back when Rapid, Cheet and I were being tortured by 'No-Tongue', he mentioned Fort Schmerzen a few times...alright, we'll get on our way."

"Might want to hurry, I have no doubt that Cheet is not being treated kindly."

"Alright," and Alex turned to face his companions, "Fort Schmerzen is towards the end of the line, second to final base I believe..."

"Let's go then," Crash replied, "Better hurry if we hope to save him."

"First things first, we need to get on that train..."

With half of the team providing overwatch, the other half split up, finding ways through the compound without alerting any of the LKA patrols, and taking down as few patrols as possible to avoid arousing suspicion. As soon as they had descended into the compound, the snowfall became much more violent, the wind picking up and blowing harder, serving well to obscure the advancing Alpha Company from any wandering eyes. When the concentration of enemy forces was too strong, Alex and his squad, consisting of Crash, Piermont, Cherub, Kovu and Kiara, hit the ground, crawling prone across the snowy ground, trying to stay off the roads whenever possible.

Occasionally, they would have enemy vehicles rolling past them, but these were easy enough to avoid, and within half an hour, they had reached the foot of the train station, leaving them with the next challenge...how to stow away on the train without attracting attention. "The platform is heavily guarded," Alex whispered to his squadmates, "But it looks like they're still loading cargo on board...let's see if we can find an empty, or at least, a relatively empty, storage crate or two that we can stash ourselves on."

When most of the platform had cleared, Alex led his unit onto the cold concrete slab, quickly digging around the cluttered cargo, searching for something to hide inside. Whenever one of the patrols or workers neared them, they took cover behind any one of the various boxes. With the blizzard ravaging the uncovered platform, even the enemies' LED flashlights were nearly lost in the the whiteout. Soon, the guards had wandered past them, and they continued their search, looking for anything they could hide within. Alex clicked the side of his radio, "All units, this is Alpha One, found anything yet?"

There was no response.

"Dammit, the blizzard must be fucking with our communications..." Piermont replied with a sigh, "Great, that's just fantastic."

"Let's hope they can take care of themselves," Crash said, sounding doubtful.

"Hey, over here!" Cherub whispered to them, and they swiftly sprinted to where she was crouching behind a larger-than-normal box on a dolly. Although the box was stuffed about halfway with ammunition, there was enough room that both she and Piermont, in their human forms, could fit inside, as well as possibly enough room for the two lion cubs to squeeze inside if they really needed. Alex searched the nearby crates, finding that all of them were about half-full, probably to stay beneath a weight limit given by the manufacturer. He, too, managed to squeeze inside one of the boxes, Crash slipping in beside him. Kovu slipped in with Piermont and Cherub, while Kiara slipped in with Alex and Crash.

"Alright..." Crash began with a sigh, biting back his claustrophobia, "Let's hope that the rest of our boys get here..."

"Or they're already here," Alex replied.

Crash shrugged, "Yeah, that, too..."

"Better hope is that they manage to remain beneath the radar."

"Amen to that."

"We're too damn deep in enemy territory to risk blowing our cover now. Especially since getting caught could possibly mean war between the Terminator Militia and Germany," then, when he realized that his hand was inside something hot and wet, "Kiara, think you could move your head somewhere where my hand _isn't _gagging you?"

"That's not my mouth," she replied firmly, "And trust me, if I could move, I would, I'm enjoying this about as much as you are."

"So what am I..." then, "Oh..."

"Eww..." Crash replied, "That's disgusting, and messed up in so many ways."

"As if I'm meaning to?"

"Shh!" Kiara whispered, "I hear someone."

Sure enough, listening carefully, they could hear muffled chatter from outside, chattering on in rapid German, occasionally broken by bouts of laughter. They were nearly overcome with a sense of vertigo when they felt the box tip to the ground, and Kiara barely managed to restrain a brief squeak of alarm. Within moments, they felt themselves being wheeled across the rough, uneven platform, before with several painful slams and bumps, the movement slowed to a stop, and the box was righted again. The world become much warmer as they heard the footsteps and chatter fade away, and heard the abrupt slam of the car door. The wind now cut out, leaving the world in silence, the temperature increased alarmingly quickly, and Crash finally began to squirm, "Okay, that's it, I'm done, get me out of here!"

"Thought you'd _never _ask," Alex replied, and he managed to wrestle open the lid of the crate, climbing out into the refurbished cattle car. Crash climbed out beside him, and Kiara hopped to the ground, abruptly cleaning her nether regions, "Sorry..." the Commander said nervously, idly wiping his hand on his shirt.

"It's fine," Keisha replied, shaking her fur, "It's all good."

With a sigh, Alex leaned back against the storage crate, glancing around the darkness of the train car, trying to get his bearings, "Wonder if the others made it on board."

"If they did," Crash replied, popping his muscles, "They're on the other cars..." and he tried his radio again.

"...Read you," came a reply over the line, in the voice of Piermont.

"Piermont? That you?" Crash asked.

"...firmative...going on?"

"Did you make it on board?"

"Rog...you?"

"Yes, yes we did. Did you see the others?"

"They...on board..."

"Good to hear..." and Crash turned to face Alex, "They must have slipped onto the other cars somehow."

Suddenly, the train car abruptly jerked forward, and slowly but surely, they began to move forward, "Ura," Alex said beneath his breath, "Fort Schmerzen, here we come."

"Sure hope we can get there before something happens to Cheet."

"You and me both, Crash," Alex replied, "You and me both..."

The forty-five minute ride was almost entirely in silence as they listened for any visitors to their car. Occasionally, they would hear the voices of nearby patrols, checking out the cars for stowaways, but they only had visitors once, and it was easy enough to hide in a dark corner, surrounded on all sides by towers of crates, while the flashlights scanned throughout the darkness across the interior of the converted cattle car. When they felt the train's momentum slow down, and it honked its horn to announce its arrival at the station, they climbed back into the storage crates, stomaching the intense heat, uncomfortable positions, cramped quarters, and waiting in silence for them to be unloaded. They ended up waiting an additional half an hour, with all three of them, their bodies long-since having fallen asleep, nearly drifting off themselves before the car door opened, allowing cool air to wash over them, regardless of how little it was.

Once more, they heard voices, this time in inaudible English, conversing back and forth as the crates were led out of the car and into what Alex assumed was a loading yard. When the two unique voices reached their crate, they heard one of the men swear and protest at its weight as they were lowered to that weird angle again and moved out. "The hell is Nick transferring in these things?" the man complained, "Friggin' bricks?"

"That's high-grade ammunition, for Schmerzen's howitzer emplacements, I strongly advise that you don't jostle that stuff around too much."

_Nick? _Alex thought, _Who the hell?_

"Why does the boss need all this ammunition? Doesn't make sense..." and the voices faded away again as the movement stopped, having reached their destination. The guards left and they could hear the sound of a large loading door slam shut. Alex awaited for several minutes, and once he was sure the voices weren't returning, he quietly lifted the lid of the crate, climbing out of the box, into a large, darkened warehouse. The others climbed out around him, and he closed the lid again, crouching and tiptoeing swiftly into the labyrinth of boxes.

"Alex here, anyone read us?" Alex whispered into his radio.

"Affirmative," came several crystal clear replies.

"Where are you guys?"

One by one, the other squads called in, revealing that they, too, were buried in a warehouse, of course, whether or not it was the _same _warehouse, they did not know. Alex, Crash, and Keisha regrouped with the other half of their squad at the entrances into the warehouse from the fortress interior.

Checking their weapons, Alex said, "Alright, load up, get ready, we're deep in LKA territory, try to maintain stealth as much as you can. If you get spotted, feel free to gun down the guards. Try to keep your silencers on, as well," and he screwed the silencer onto his AK47. "Right, let's move."

He slowly, quietly opened the door, slipping into the bright, hot interior of Fort Schmerzen. The sound of active machinery blocked out all sound, and they were forced to resort to telepathy, hiding behind several large, thick, metallic pipes heading down from the high walls to the floor. They waited, and soon, they watched as, one-by-one, the rest of Alpha Company emerged from the darkness of the warehouse.

"Hell did you guys get on board?" Alex asked Sonic and his squad, the first to emerge.

"Found some empty crates, stashed away in them."

The other parties reported similarly, and once they had regrouped, Alex led them deeper into the fortress, keeping an eye out for any guards. Surprisingly, there were very few around, and even the ten plus members of Alpha Company had no problem hiding from any people they _did _come across, even when they traveled together. Whoever was commanding the LKA now was either stupid, inexperienced, or both.

After an hour of navigating the labyrinthine, wide halls of the eerily empty fortress, finding that several wings seemed to be in the process of expansion, modernization, reconstruction, or all of the above, they finally reached the command room. It was easy enough to clear it out, alerting only the room's occupants. Hiding the bodies, Alex placed his weapon against a table, sitting down at one of the computer terminals and rapidly typing away, hacking into the fort's security cameras. Piermont had seated himself across from Alex, dialing in to the enemy comms and listening for any sign of Cheet's presence. Finally, Alex identified where Cheet was being kept, a containment cell, outside in the snow, completely enclosed in a sort of large cage, probably more fit to keep intruders out of outside storage zones, than to imprison a helpless cheetah cub.

"I found him," Alex called anxiously, "He's being held, looks like on ground floor, on the opposite side of the facility. If we leave now, we can probably get there in ten to twenty minutes, half hour at most."

"Let's move," Piermont responded, "Sooner we get there, better chances that we can save Cheet before he gets sick...or worse."

Grabbing his weapon, Alex hurried jumped out of the seat, opening a bulkhead, they hurried out of the command center, racing towards where Cheet was being contained. They met mild resistance, and upon speeding through an airlock, they found themselves outside, inside of the cage-like dome structure. At the far end, collapsed on the ground, unconscious, was Cheet. "CHEET!" Alex called, racing to the cub's side, and he heard laughter nearby. Almost immediately, he was upright on his feet, clinging his weapon tightly, scanning the open area for any sign of the laughter's owner.

"Was wondering when you were gonna show," a voice said behind him, and he rapidly rotated on his heels, finding a strange-looking creature standing on the catwalk, raise about ten feet, that encircled the perimeter of the chamber. The creature had orange fur, dog-like ears, and seemed to be, almost segmented. His hands and feet, detached from his body, somehow floated in place, and his head, also detached from his torso, was against his chest, eyes closed and mouth twisted in an arrogant grin.

"Who the hell are you?" Alex roared, "What did you do to Cheet!?"

"Why are you so angry, Alex?"

"How do you know my name?"

"Rayman, don't pick on him," another, all-too-familiar voice rang out, and Alex's eyes snapped shut as he turned to face the catwalk across from Rayman. Nicholas Vaughn, his brother, younger by only five or so years, was leaning back against the wall of the confinement, arms crossed on his chest, "I've been waiting for you, Alex."

"Nick? The hell are you doing _here_?"

He righted himself, throwing his arms out before him, "Decided to pick up where 'No-Tongue' left off. LKA needed a leader, figured I'd take the helm, maybe, even, finally prove to you that I'm better than _you _are."

Lowering his weapon, Alex rolled his eyes, "Are you serious? You hijacked the LKA and Fort Schmerzen, imprisoned and tortured Cheet, just to support some kind of childish argument that you're better than me? Are you fucking serious? I should drop you where you stand."

"Now why would you do that to your own flesh and blood?"

"Do you even _realize _what you're getting yourself into? You don't want to get on my bad side, and there are other, nonviolent means of competing with us."

"I don't feel like talking," and he waved towards Rayman, his apparent second-in-command, "Rough him up a bit, cool him down so we can negotiate."

"Yes, sir," the creature replied, flipping over the rails and onto the ground floor. Exchanging his assault rifle for his twin swords, Alex charged towards the creature, engaging him in a vicious, rapid duel. He found that he was doing very little damage to the creature, and as Rayman swiftly clocked him in the jaw, causing him to stumble, he watched as a golden orb shot from the creature's palm, nailing him square in the chest. It burned like fire, and he healed the wound with a sea of blue sparks as Alex evaded another shot from Rayman.

"Is this really necessary?" he asked, but he was silenced by another barrage of those golden orbs. Alex leaped towards the creature, staying behind him and just out of his reach as he slashed repeatedly with his sword, finding that the creature was healing whatever slashes he did within moments of its infliction. The fact that his body was already in pieces meant that any kind of decapitation or amputation to either stun or kill him would not work. An idea came to his mind, and he dodged another onslaught of orbs from the creature before counterattacking by lunging forward, impaling the creature through the strange target on the purple shirt he was wearing on his dismembered torso, pinning him to the wall. As he withdrew his sword, coming away coated in a luminescent, white fluid, Rayman collapsed into pieces, unmoving, the pieces not reforming. Believing he had made the kill, Alex sheathed his swords, turning to face his brother, now standing with jaw dropped, "Now that we've taken care of _that_," Alex began, "Let's talk about your allegiance to the LKA and why that's a _very _bad idea. Here's your ultimatum, I'm willing to forgive you for all this BS, cause you're my flesh-and-blood, but you have to drop the LKA, right now. If you refuse, then I _will _kill you, there's your options."

Nick was stunned silent.

"There's other ways to try and prove a point than this. You don't want to get involved with the LKA, they're bad people."

"And you're not? You cause misery in everyone you come across, and you killed my best friend!"

"Well, you're straight-up lying about the misery part, and as for the death of your so-called friend," and he nodded towards the collapsed pieces, "Well, that's your own damn fault, you shouldn't have set him on me with the intent to kill, or otherwise harm. You kidnapped Cheet, you're fucking lucky that I'm not making you pay for what you did to him. Here's your chance to walk away, I _strongly _suggest you take it."

"But..."

"No 'buts', walk away, or you will not leave this frozen hellhole...at least alive."

Without giving his brother a chance to reply, Alex walked over to where Crash knelt beside Cheet, the rest of Alpha Company standing guard and willing to attack should someone come near.

"How is he?" the Commander asked.

"Alive, suffering from hypothermia and unconscious, but alive. He's drenched, if we don't get him out of here soon, it won't be pretty."

"Cherub," and Alex turned to face her, "Could you do me a huge favor and take Cheet back to Cartoon City? We'll be there ASAP."

"Hell are we gonna do about your dick of a brother?" Piermont snapped, nodding towards where Nick, having climbed down, was kneeling beside his fallen friend's side, in silence.

"He got here, he can get himself back home, I'll have Elliot send some soldiers in here to take the fortress from the LKA. We've confirmed their presence, German government should have no problem letting us clear them out. Oh, and Nick?" and he turned to face his brother, who wouldn't even spare him a parting glance, "I suggest you high-tail it out of here before Elliot's boys get here, else you might as well kiss you're ass goodbye," and he turned to face Alpha Company again, "I'm gonna call Beta Company to hold the fort here, then we'll be on our way. Cherub, take care of Cheet."

She nodded, once more in her natural form, with Crash and Cheet both on her back, the former caring for the latter, "I will."

Spreading her wings, and warning her passengers, she rocketed upwards, through the roof and heading towards the horizon, where, in a flash of light, she was gone.

Once the first responders of Beta Company arrived, assuring that they had everything under control, the rest of Alpha Company mounted up and headed into the chilly, bitterly cold, windy skies above the Ardennes Forest. Within the blink of an eye, they were no longer in the snowy skies above Germany, but in the equally cold skies above Cartoon City. Beneath them, the Quad Cities spread out for miles all around. There was little wind, even from such a high altitude, but snow was drifting lazily down from the skies. While Cherub proceeded towards the city's hospital, hoping Fox could ensure the health and recovery of the cheetah cub, Alex and the rest of Alpha Company settled themselves before the apartment complex that they lived in. Alex stood on the sidewalk heading to the door, even after the rest of his unit had already disappeared inside, staring towards where Cherub had headed.

"You okay?" Piermont asked, and he turned to face his dragon, seemingly concerned.

Alex nodded reluctantly, "Yeah...worried about Cheet..."

"He'll be fine, don't worry," and Piermont chuckled, "Hell, kid's got a heart of fire, don't think anything can bring _him _down, especially a little bit of cold."

"Still doesn't keep me from worrying about him."

"Hey, I understand," and Piermont, nuzzled his rider affectionately, "You care about him, he cares about you, makes sense to me, but really, don't worry, he'll be fine. As much as I don't want to say this, Cherub will ensure that he gets there quick and easy, and Crash'll take care of him, Cheet's in good hands, don't worry."

Alex only sighed in response, still staring off towards where they had gone.

After several moments of silence, Piermont asked, "Tell me, is there anything I can do to help take your mind off of him?"

Alex shook his head, "I won't be able to until I'm sure that he's okay and will make a full recovery."

Then, after several moments of silence, Alex asked, "Hey, Piermont..."

"Yo?"

"What's between you and Cherub?"

"What do you mean?"

"Now you're complimenting her? I thought you hated her guts."

"Yeah, well, she's pretty good at what she does, I'll give her that, and she learns quickly."

Alex grinned, "You're crushing on her, aren't you?"

"What? No! Of course not!"

"You can't lie to me," Alex replied, a knowing look on his face, "You're attracted to her."

"Am not! 'Sides, how can you tell?"

"Because I'm, unfortunately, able to feel it, you wanna do her."

"Oh hell naw! She ain't my type!" but Alex was looking at him with a bemused glance.

"You're feelings say otherwise."

Piermont frowned, before sighing, "Shit, can't hide anything from you, can I?"

"Nope."

"Dammit...that's not gonna make me feel good about this stuff. When we get girlfriends, I mean...we ain't gonna...share that love and attraction are we?"

Alex shrugged, "I don't know, Pierre, the whole specifics on the dragon/rider bond are still confusing to me. I don't get it."

"Yeah, and unfortunately, neither do I, cause it seems we can feel a lot more from each other than just our heartbeats, beating in synch with one another."

"Considering I can feel it whenever you see her in...whatever that lustful light is that you do sometimes, then yeah. Like right now."

Piermont groaned, but otherwise said nothing, looking away, thoroughly embarrassed.

"I don't care man, we're both guys, it happens."

"Still though, the fact that we can sense how the other is feeling as accurately as we do frightens me. Suddenly scared what will happen when we both get to the point where we find mates, cause that'll be really weird."

"Doubt it'll be _that _bad."

"Yeah, well I'm glad _one _of us does."

And Alex noticed that Piermont was beginning to reveal himself, unable to control it. "I will never understand the concept of liking girls. It just doesn't make sense to me, and every time I turn around and you've been around her, you get the biggest hard on."

"Shut up," Piermont snorted, smoke pouring from his nostrils, "Don't rub it in."

"If you like her that much, then why don't you just ask her out?"

"It doesn't work that way."

"Like hell it don't, what're you afraid of? I mean, really?"

"I don't need her knowing that I'm a great big softy, and that the facade ain't legit."

"She'll find out eventually."

"We'll see about that."

"Especially if you decide to do something with her."

"Which I won't."

"Uh huh."

"No, I won't, cause that's what I have you there for, right?"

Alex rolled his eyes, "You wanting a rub off?"

The dragon said nothing.

"Don't get you sometimes, man."

"Yeah, well," and he walked over to a private corner of the lot, laying down on his side and exposing his belly and the engorged bulge of his sheathe to his rider, you haven't reached sexual maturity yet. Trust me, when you do, it'll hit you like a damn brick wall. Guarantee it."

"Yeah, we'll see," and Alex grabbed onto the slowly emerging, pink length of his mount, tugging and massaging gently.

"Trust me, you will. You may not now, but you will." and he thrusted uncontrollably as jets of milky white splashed out and across the snowy ground. Finally, the spray stopped, the dragon breathing heavily, but making no sound as he continued to thrust subtly with the last pangs of pleasure, his now-softened self retreating swiftly into its sheathe. When he had recovered, he said, shyly, "Thanks for that...you know you don't have to keep doing that for me."

"Yeah well, it makes you feel good, and it makes you happy, might as well make you happy if we're gonna be stuck together in this little dragon/rider bond thing, right?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean you have to if you don't want to."

"I'm not bothered by it, not like you can do it yourself, what with your talons."

He nodded, still embarrassed, "Yeah..."

"So, is it really _that _bad?"

"What?"

"Finding girls...y'know...attractive?"

Piermont grinned, "It's a double-edged sword. On one hand, you think you're all cool and badass cause you're thinking like the big boys. At the same time, sometimes it just sucks. Coming feels good, I'll tell you that right now, but if you don't get it when you're horny, dude, it aches and hurts."

"Sure you aren't just overreacting?"

"Heh, we'll see what you think when you wake up one night to find that you splatted your boxers after a particularly racy dream."

"You've done that?"

"Eh...once or twice. Cherub caught me once..." and he blushed and frowned unhappily, "_That _was embarrassing."

"What did she say?"

"She didn't say anything, only looked away, probably hoping that I didn't know she saw anything. Which I did."

"Maybe she wanted to be on the receiving end?"

"Ha, I doubt it, she likes me about as much as I pretend to like her."

"How do _you _know she doesn't just like you back and pretends to hate you, like you do to her?"

He shrugged, "I...dunno."

Then, after several moments of silence, with Alex laying against his mount's warm belly, the dragon himself holding a protective wing over his rider, the Commander said, "You know, I wonder if anyone could even _begin _to like me, what with how weird I am."

"You ain't weird."

"I'm a child soldier, Piermont. I mean, I scare people...plus, I know I'm different, and people don't like others who aren't like them."

"That's just how kids are, betcha as soon as you reach adulthood, or even sooner once you reach puberty, you'll find that people, especially of the opposite sex, tend to look at and act towards you differently."

"How so?"

He shrugged, "Dunno, can't explain it."

"Besides...I'm already hitting puberty..."

Piermont laughed, "Yeah, right, you still sound like a squeaker man. Gettin' hair on the nether regions yet?"

Silence from the Commander.

"Oh...also, don't ask how I know that."

"How do you know that?"

"Hey, you did your research on dragon maturity and reproduction after I started actin' differently, I did the same to humans after you started actin' different."

"Cept I ran into a dead end with my research...at least until we got Fox. Bet you found more than you wanted to on the Internet."

"Oh buddy, there's a lot of spooky stuff there."

"Wouldn't doubt it," then after several more moments of silence, "You think I'll even find a girl who likes me?"

"Yeah, there's someone out there for you, just you wait and see."

"I thought Sabrina felt the same towards me that I did to her..." and he frowned sadly.

"Y'know, it happens," Piermont replied, "We all have our little childhood crushes that are nothing more than puppy love. You and Sabrina have known each other for a long time, you were there for each other."

"She just seems...I dunno...distant these days."

"She's reaching that stage where she begins to be concerned about how she looks and carries herself, and how people view her. All part of puberty man."

"I see..."

"Seems to me that females of _all _species mature faster and sooner than males, don't know why that is, for you humans, females become fertile at around, like, ten to thirteen years old, guys anywhere from thirteen to sixteen...least if I remember correctly."

"You and Cherub fertile?"

"Dunno about Cherub, I mean, I've seen her...y'know...pleasure herself, course she didn't know I found her doing it, but I've seen her do it, but that don't mean anything. As for me...well, yeah. Soon as that milky shit starts shooting from the nether regions, you're ready to make babies," and he chuckled, "Shit, feel like I'm gonna be the one who teaches you the birds and the bees, the one who gets to give you the wonderful 'talk' that parents dread."

"I know how reproduction works, Pierre. I'm not proud of it, but I know how to have sex, it's kinda common sense. Also know how to court girls, I'm just too afraid to."

"I know, I was just making a joke," then, "You looking for a girlfriend?"

"Looking for a close friend that's a girl? Yeah, but a girlfriend in the...well teenage sense, no, perfectly happy being single."

"Yet you're over here wondering if you'll ever find a girl who likes you more than just a friend."

"Some things make me feel...different...than others."

"What do you mean?"

Then, with a sigh, he admitted, "Like with Kiara..."

"Yeah?"

"When we were on the train to Fort Schmerzen, me, her, and Crash were hiding out in a box together."

"Okay?"

"Well...apparently, I had accidentally touched her...yeah..."

"Okay, and?"

"I just felt...different. Like goosebumps, y'know?"

"Yeah..."

"And what's worse, is that while we were waiting for Beta Company, she walked off to relieve herself, and I kinda...watched her...and I got that goosebumps feeling again, butterflies in the stomach, like it was something I wasn't supposed to do, but I wanted to."

"You got a hard on?"

Alex glared at him, then reluctantly sighed.

The dragon chuckled, "Ah yes, that moment when you find yourself become interested in the opposite sex, perhaps more so than just simple friends. Then you decided you want to get a look at certain...areas...of the female body, and you wanna touch 'em. I know that feeling."

"With Cherub?"

"Course," he replied with a shy grin, "I'd sneak off and follow her just to peep whenever she had to take a piss or bathe, couple of times I tried to get a good look at her while she slept, that's perfectly normal, especially when you're starting to mature. Though, the fact that you got hot watching a female _animal _is a little...strange."

"I get you off, don't I?"

"Yeah, but you don't get any enjoyment out of it...do you?"

Silence.

And Piermont's eyes widened with realization, "Oh, crap, it all makes sense now."

"I don't understand..." Alex replied, distressed, "What's wrong with me?"

"You're growing up," Piermont replied, affectionately nuzzling his rider again.

"Yeah, but I should be feeling that way with members of my own species, not animals, especially not with animals of the same sex."

"Maybe you will, once you actually, y'know, have a chance to be around members of your own species, of the opposite sex, for longer than a few seconds at a time."

"Hope you're right."

"Don't worry about it, it's perfectly normal."

"Still doesn't make it any less weirder to me."

"Not surprised, it's a frame of mind that you aren't used to thinking, trust me, it'll get better, I was in the same boat as you, don't forget."

Alex shrugged.

"Anyway, it's cold, I'm freezing my balls off out here, let's go back inside and get warmed up."

Alex nodded, standing up, brushing the snow off his pants as he helped his dragon stand, "One thing, though..." Alex began.

"Sure, what's up?"

"This stays between us, okay?"

"Of course, kinda figured that was the case anyway."

"Awesome."


	12. Chapter XII: Chasing Ghosts

_**Chapter XII**_**:**

**-''Chasing Ghosts''-**

**-Connorsville, Illinois-**

**-**_**05 May 2005**_**-**

**-**_**1013 Hours**_**-**

Alex sat by himself on the swingset in the playground of Thomas Jefferson Elementary School. It was his last week of fifth grade, and finally both he and his comrades were going to be free of the awkwardness and nuisance that was school, free to spend the summer to themselves, where they would no longer be mocked by their peers, or mistreated, and they would no longer have to worry about homework. They could finally sleep in, stay up late, and best of all, this was the last year of elementary school. His parents had told him that school was much different in junior high than in elementary, more often than not, the kids were a lot less cruel and immature. They had also told him that high school was also much different from junior high. It didn't matter to him, he was finally almost out of this hellhole, putting some of the worst years of his life behind him.

The temperature outside was warm and breezy, it was bright and sunny in the sky above, and there wasn't a cloud in sight. In addition to the sounds of the kids laughing and playing, something that, even after all these years of schooling, he _still _could not understand their uncanny and dangerous ability to not worry about anything, not worry about their surroundings, about the potential dangers of the world. He knew and understood that he was a unique scenario, that the loss of his childhood and his exposure to the evils of the world from such a young age, and his corruption and indoctrination as a child soldier at the hands of General Plastro, had scarred him emotionally, rendering him unable to share the same frame of mind that his peers had.

Alpha Company stood around him, chatting, training, whatever they could to entertain themselves, purposely isolating themselves from the rest of the students. They had been through far too much hate from their peers, that it was just easier for them to avoid the students, than to stick around them and potentially find themselves caught in a similar situation to the abusive bully that Alex had liquefied two years earlier. "Sit tight for a little while longer," Piermont began, suddenly appearing beside his rider, in his human form, "And we'll be free of this hellhole once and for all."

"That's my frame of mind," Alex replied with a firm nod, "You don't know how happy I am to remove myself from this situation, at least for a little while."

"Heh, I don't blame you, hasn't been our brightest moments in life."

Alex nodded slowly, lost in thought.

"Hell you thinking about?" he asked.

Alex shrugged, "Nothing in particular, mainly just remembering everything we've had to experience here."

"Ah, I see..." and after several seconds of silence, the human-form dragon clapped him on the back, "C'mon, let's spar."

"And have the teachers intervene, maybe even call the authorities, because there are two kids fighting on the playgrounds?"

Piermont grinned widely, "Alex, I have two words for you," and he crouched until his mouth was level with his rider's ear, "Fuck. Them," and he leaned back, stretching and sitting on the swing beside Alex, "Let 'em do whatever the hell they want, they wanna be assholes, so be it, in a week's time, you can say goodbye to these sorry motherfuckers forever."

"Until Summer ends, and we find ourselves in a new school, with a new student body, ready to be ostracized and mistreated once again."

"You don't know that for sure," the dragon replied, "Junior high is different from elementary school apparently. Maybe the kids'll be more understanding."

"I don't care if they understand me or not, I just want to be as far away from them as physically possible. They can think of me however they want, just so long as they don't screw with me, or Alpha Company, I'm golden."

"It'll be fine, don't worry."

"Do you _honestly _believe that, Pierre? Things are never 'fine' with us..." and he grimaced, "It's a sad fact of life."

"Cheer up, seriously, why do you gotta be such a downer all the time?"

"Because I know people, I know how cynical people can be, targeting those they deem as less fortunate or utterly different. In case you haven't noticed, I'm not _normal _compared to everyone else, take that, my dark mannerisms and personality, my lack of innocence, my antisocial behavior, and the fact that I surround myself with an army of talking animals...it adds up, gives those assholes every reason in the world to attack us."

Suddenly, he was interrupted by a blast of thunder and a distant, reverberating roar. "What in God's name..." Piermont began, as Alpha Company all shielded their eyes against a blinding flash of light above the school. That booming roar, familiar, but also different, resounded again, and they watched, stunned, as a massive, spiky black dragon with deep red eyes emerged above the school, booming his own voice, deep, evil, and frightening.

"What in the hell is _that_!?" Alex exclaimed.

"Ahaha!" the dragon roared in a deep, almost demonic voice, even if not layered, "Watch as the little _yunkliin _flee in terror. Your screams are _lovaas wah dii honiir_ Worthless humans, I am _Maardolok_, terror of the skies! Your tiny forms shall satiate my appetite!"

Alpha Company rushed into action, but Alex held them back, "Don't!" he snapped.

The dragon, Maardolok, landed on the busted asphalt, allowing his rider, a tall, pale man with amber eyes, and long, thick black hair, to dismount. The man was clad in a black leather robe, and he called to the terrified, silent children, "Where is the one called Alex Vaughn? I have a score to settle with little Ali."

"Ali!?" and Alex felt his stomach lurched...only one person had called him that...

That familiar roar sounded again, and in another flash of light, a mighty, deeply battle-scarred, emerald dragon, of the same species as Piermont, emerged from the vortex, roaring to the skies, "_PYRE! ZACK!_"

At mention of the name 'Zack', Alex felt himself stiffen, and he could sense Piermont was every bit as frightened as he was. Thankfully, the rest of Alpha Company was too distracted by the ongoing events to notice the fear in their commander.

_It can't be him...can it? _Piermont thought to his rider in the privacy of his mind.

Alex shook his head, _No...it can't be..._

The man turned around to face the new arrivals, and he grinned, an almost maddening smile, "It would seem that I have some visitors."

The large Martaanean forest dragon landed beside the black dragon, apparently the one called 'Pyre' if the man _was _indeed, who Alex and Piermont thought he was. The black dragon was immensely larger than the forest dragon, but still the latter seemed ready to engage, in attack formation with head lowered, back arched, and scales raised. "You shouldn't have come here, Ali!" the man roared, and Alex realized that it _was _who he thought it was...

"Sorry, mate," another, younger man's voice called, "But I can't let you terrorize this place, too."

"I will destroy you!" the emerald dragon roared, "Both you _AND _your goddamn bat!"

"_Alex! Wait up!_" a female voice rang out, omnipresent, as, with several more flashes of light, two small dragons emerged from another vortex, one purple with a golden belly and horns, one black with a ruby-red belly, and ivory horns.

"What the hell is happening right now?" Piermont asked, turning to face his rider, deeply concerned.

"I don't know..." Alex replied, "I really don't know..."

As they watched, another flash appeared, and a bright, sky-blue, rainbow maned pegasus emerged, zipping down to where the four dragons were standing off.

"You chickenshit bastard!" the emerald dragon's mount roared, "Hiding behind a bunch of kids!?"

The black dragon's rider chuckled, "Ali, you are one to talk, hiding behind your precious Alpha Company. You call _me _the villain, and yet, _you _are the one who let your supposed best friend die for your own survival. You are selfish, arrogant, and ruthless, a warmonger, you seek only death and destruction, while I seek peace and tranquility."

"You seek to save the world by destroying it!? What the hell kinda logic is _that_!?"

"I am guided by angels, what can _you _say?"

"We _are _angels, you cocksucking son of a bitch!" the emerald dragon spat.

Piermont and Alex exchanged confused and worried glances, completely speechless and unsure what to think about the confrontation they were experiencing.

Laughter bellowed from the rider of the black dragon, "Ah yes, the fallen Archangel Messoremel and the fabled Old Regime, I know what you are. He warned me about you, he warned me that you would stand in my way. I will not let you win the war, Ali. If you are unwilling to submit to me, then I bet that your past self would think otherwise! You should have heeded my warning," the rider then turned to face the crowd, "Let it be known, that if I find out _any _of you are harboring the one called Alex Vaughn, you will wish that I was merciful in my punishment, and you will plead for a god to spare your wretched lives! Pyre! We have a brat to find!" the black dragon only roared, leaping into the air and hovering above the school.

"Heed my words, Ali," the black dragon's rider began, "This is your last chance. Surrender now, return to the wretched hell you call a capital, and you won't have to watch as any more of your so-called 'friends' die a slow, painful death," and with this final statement, the black dragon spun around in midair and shot forward, arching in the skies and disappearing over the horizon.

The emerald dragon, his rider, and their comrades crouched low to the ground, as if preparing to take off, before the emerald dragon's rider abruptly ordered, "No, leave him."

"_What!?_" the emerald dragon exclaimed, in shock "This son of a bitch is gonna kill you here so you don't threaten him in the apparent future, and yet you want us to let him get away?"

"He won't kill me," the rider replied with a chuckle.

"And how the hell do _you _know? I don't care what year we're in, man. As we are, we're barely able to take him on now, if we really are in the past, we don't stand a ghost of a chance!"

"It's probably just another parallel universe," the small black dragon with the red belly, apparently a female, sighed.

"No," the emerald dragon's rider replied again, "We're in the past..._our _past."

"The hell do you..." the dragon began before he was interrupted.

"Because I remember this day..." the dragon's rider continued, turning to face the crowd, suddenly grinning widely. Alex and Piermont slowly began to back away as the rider dismounted from his beast, moving towards them.

"Uh...should we be worried?" Piermont asked.

"I'm not sure, Alex responded, beneath his breath, "Let's get out of here!" and they abruptly spun around, running the opposite direction. Out of nowhere, the pegasus, her fur a brilliant cyan blue with a rainbow-colored mane, appeared, swooping down and landing, standing between them and their escape path. They turned to go the opposite direction before the purple dragon blocked it, and rotating to go the _other _direction, the small black dragon girl cut them off...they were completely boxed in. "Shit..." Alex swore, turning to face the approaching rider of the green dragon.

"Alex Vaughn," the rider began, "And Piermont the Dragon...now where do you imagine you're going to run off, too, hmm?"

"Who are you?" Alex hissed, "You come another step closer, and we'll have you all strewn out on the fuckin' road!"

"Definitely us," the emerald dragon sighed with a grim chuckle, turning into his human form and running to catch up to his rider, two dolphins they had brought with them to either side. Alex was alarmed by how much the dragon's human form resembled Piermont's own. Even the rider resembled Alex, to some degree.

Shoving away his thoughts, Alex withdrew one of his golden P2K's, taking aim at the rider, "I ain't gonna ask again!" he spat, "Who the hell _are _you!"

"Go on," the rider replied with a chuckle, "Shoot me, see what happens."

"Obliged," Alex replied with a malicious grin and he fired several shots at the man in quick succession, scattering the crowd, and each shot struck their target. The rider merely stumbled forward for a moment, quickly picking himself up and spitting out each of the bullets onto the pavement. His whole body, clad in a strange set of black armor, consisting of a chain mail tunic with steel, plated armour atop it and a gladiator-style helmet, topped with curved devil's horns. The suit of armor was heavily charred, with barely readable embossing covering it, "Silver bullets..." the rider continued, "A few years ago, I'd be dead, not so much now."

Alex dropped his weapon, in shock, slowly backing away into the Pegasus' side. "Now, now, no need to be violent," the unknown, human-form dragon chuckled.

"Fuck you," Piermont spat.

"Wait a minute..." the black she-dragon began, "You're telling us that these guys...they're you?"

Alex stiffened, and Piermont thought to him, _What in the actual hell is going on here...?_

_I...I don't know... _Alex replied grimly, _They're...they're _us_!? But how!?_

_I'm not sure...I don't trust 'em, _Piermont growled.

"Yep," the rider replied.

"And this _isn't _a parallel universe?"

"Nope."

"I remember this day now," the unknown human-form dragon replied with a chuckle, "Ah...good times. For the record, Cyn, spoiler alert, Zack never _does _manage to kill us, obviously."

"No way," Piermont spat, saying what Alex was thinking, "No _fuckin_' way, there is no way in _hell _that you are us."

"You'd be surprised, mate," the rider, apparently older Alex, replied bitterly.

"You don't look like us!" Alex growled.

"Probably because there's a good...what...how many year difference between these midgets and you guys?" the Pegasus asked, and Alex glared at her.

"2005, if memory serves correctly. Nearly ten years ago," older Alex responded, approaching them again.

Both Alex and Piermont stiffened, in shock that he had been correct, and they glanced towards each other.

"I'm right, aren't I?" older Alex asked.

"Who _are _you?" The Commander asked, in shock.

"We're you, dumbass," older Piermont growled, "Been over this already."

"But...how?"

"Easy, that guy there came back here to kill us when we were still kids."

The purple dragon, looking towards the direction of where the black dragon and his rider flew off, began, "You know, for a bad guy who's desperately trying to break the usual 'bad guy' stereotype, he's sure abusing the same damn tropes..." and he turned to face Alex and Piermont, "Name's Spyro, by the way," and he pointed towards the Commander, "Your second-in-command, come roughly 2008 or '09."

Older Alex began here, seeming worried, "I know what it may seem like, but you guys _need _to believe us. I know, I was in your position ten years ago, you're thinking 'who is this guy' and 'this can't _possibly _be me', but I am...but _we _are."

Alex sighed, asking, "That guy...Zack...is that the same..."

His older counterpart shook his head, saying, "No, it's not."

"But...he used the same..."

"It's not," the older man interrupted him.

"Okay then," Alex sighed, "Fair enough I guess."

Come lunch time, Alpha Company sat at a table, their new arrivals, referring to themselves as the '2014 High Command', sitting around them, "So who was that guy?" Alex asked.

"A man named Zack," older Alex responded, "In the year 2014, the guy leads an old enemy army of ours known as the _Maxia_, a force we _thought _we had destroyed last year, during the Second Civil War, which you will love when it happens."

"Second Civil War? What the hell _happens_?"

"Nothing you really need to think too much into. Anyway, we _thought _we had wiped out the _Maxia_, turns out we didn't, they had just gone underground...so this new guy, named Zack, comes out of nowhere and takes them over, bringing them back from the grave and waging war on us...we were fighting him in present day before that stupid dragon of his, an Akaviri dragon named Pyre, hailing from the land of Skyrim in the Gothics nation of Tamriel...you'll meet them soon enough...went rocketing back to the past...to this day. We followed him down here and...yeah...so here we are."

"So, let me get this straight,"Alex began, sitting up in his chair, "You guys are here from 2014, chasing after some crazy son of a bitch who's leading a radical cult that you just won a war against?"

"Sums it up about right," older Alex replied, examining his fingernails and fishing out his KA-BAR knife, proceeding to clean them.

Alex chuckled, genuinely amused, "That's...that's rich. You expect us to _believe _that shit?"

"I don't _expect _you to," the older man sighed, irritated, "You _will_...eventually."

"Uh huh...sure you might _look _like me," and Alex pointed an accusing fingernail at their new arrivals, "And might have stolen my name, but I'm gonna need some proof that..."

Cleaning his fingernails, older Alex began, in a singsong, almost mocking tone, "You are twelve years old, was kidnapped when you were three by General Plastro of the Tan Army. A kid named Zack Dawson took you under his wing, trained you to be in special ops. You two were pretty good, so good Plastro put you into the _Devil's Hands_, also known as _Devha_, together, and your enemies began to refer to you as the _Son of Satan_. You won a curbstomp victory at the Battle of Fort Zero, after which you and Zack dosed up on a random serum you dreamed about. _Devha _led the assault on Charity Hill, Green Nation, which was a tactical and strategic disaster, Zack was K.I.A, the Tans disbanded and were absorbed by the Green Army into the Green/Tan Collective, or GTC for short."

As the older man rambled on, Alex felt his heart sink...sure enough, this guy knew his history, and although it could be easily explained as a quick search into Alpha Company on the Internet, he was alarmed by it nevertheless.

"After the absorption of the GTC," older Alex continued, without noticing that Alex's mind had drifted, "You went on an alliance trip to Africa, met and befriended the first two members of your dream army, the Terminator Militia, a pair of lion cubs named Simba and Nala. Soon after, you had your baptism by fire against a militia known as the LKA, and gained a few more to your ranks over the years..." and Alex recalled the entire history of Alpha Company up to that day in 2005. When younger Alex still wasn't convinced, older Alex continued, getting more personal, "You have a crush on the local neighbor girl, one Sabrina Ford. Also, at this point in time, I believe you were jacking off Pierre on a semi-regular basis..." and both versions of said human-form dragon glared at Alex, who only grinned with a light chuckle, "You also have a boner for animals, beginning with when you accidentally touched Kiara's...lady parts."

Alex stiffened, and both he and Kiara exchanged embarrassed glances before looking away from each other. Alex could feel the scrutinizing eyes of Alpha Company upon him, but when they didn't respond, he released his held breath and prayed they didn't speak about it...although he had a feeling they would bring it up later.

Older Alex continued, "Need I go on?"

Furious, for an unknown reason, Alex hissed, "Fine, fine! I believe you, all right?" then he nodded towards the rest of his doppelgänger's comrades, "So who's the rest of you sons of bitches."

"My name is Spyro," the purple dragon began with a nod, "My mate and I, Cynder," and he nuzzled the black she-dragon lovingly, "Joined Alpha Company in early 2009, when an enemy force known as the _Maxia _attacked our home and kidnapped her. I passed an experimental training course known as the Gauntlet and gained admission into the High Command, where I was trained as Alex's wing-second and second-in-command."

"The _Maxia_?" Piermont finally asked, "Are they related to the LKA?"

"Not at all..." Older Alex responded with a slow shake of the head.

"Oh...go on."

"My name is Cynder," the she-dragon began, "He...pretty much explained all there is to know about me, except for one other thing..." and she nodded towards Alex, "I'm also his...your...mate."

"Mate?" and Alex stiffened. Although he had a feeling that he had a greater tendency to become attracted to animals over another of his own species, never would he have imagined finding himself mated to one, even though he was secretly relieved, both that he _did_, in fact, find love, and also that the girl, Cynder, was not necessarily unattractive...

Piermont chuckled, "Shit, looks like you went bestial on us after all!" Alex only glared at him.

"I'm Rainbow Dash," the Pegasus began, "You can just call me Dash though...I'm...eh..._also_...one of the mates of Alex Vaughn..."

Alex grew pale, his heart sinking. Not just one mate, but _two_? Once more, she wasn't necessarily unattractive, but he found the dragoness slightly more so. Piermont only gained a wider grin, and Alex thought towards him, _You shut up!_

_It's funny!_

_I said shut up!_

Shyly, one of the dolphins said, the grayer, larger one, "My name is Ruby..." and she nuzzled the older Alex.

Alex was alarmed to find his emotions conflicted over the dolphin, there was something about her...something familiar, but also alien, and he felt an inexplicable attachment to her. Oddly, he found himself wanting _her _over the others, "Are you one of my mates, too?" he Alex asked, eyes wide in alarm and slightly fear, afraid of a reaction, but also wanting to know.

The dolphin smiled warmly, and nodded vigorously, hugging the older man, who only smiled, gently and idly petting her, paying special attention to the base of her dorsal fin. Alex felt relieved, and also felt a spike of heat surge throughout his body, not unlike what he had felt when he had accidentally brushed against Kiara. If there was one apparent 'mate' he was looking forward to being with, it was the dolphin, Ruby. Finally, in disbelief, not disgusted, but not necessarily amused either, Alex laid back in his seat, rubbing his temples.

Piermont bellowed in laughter, "Shit, man! You're a player!"

"More like a whore," and Alex glared at Cheet, who only shrugged, "Hey, I'm just sayin'."

"I'm...also...technically...one of your mates," the purple dragon, Spyro, began, looking away.

"Oh God..." Alex exclaimed, both surprised and highly disgusted, not only was he bestial, but he was mated to a _male dragon_!?

Piermont only laughed harder, "And you're _gay_? Dude, what in the actual fuck!?"

_Shut up, Pierre! _Alex thought towards him.

_C'mon man, take a joke, seriously._

_It's not funny!_

_Like hell it's not! Dude, this shit is hilarious and unbelievable, I mean, c'mon...you _really _believe this shit?_

_I just...I don't even know anymore..._

_What? You're not actually, y'know, _attracted _to any of these guys, are you?_

_The dolphin and the black dragoness, yes, _he admitted, _The purple one and the Pegasus? No, not really._

_What do you find so appealing about the dolphin? She's one ugly motherfucker, though I do agree that the black girl is kinda sexy...I'd probably bang._

What's he had settled down, Alex nodded towards the other dolphin, smaller, and a lot bluer in color,"What about you? Are _you _one of my mates, too?"

The male dolphin seemed to think for a few moments before nodding, "Indeed I am."

"Oh _Jesus Christ!_" Alex exclaimed, burying his head in his hands, and Piermont lost it once again.

After several minutes, and once everyone had calmed down, Alex asked, "So...are there more of you...or is that it?"

"If you're referring to my mates," older Alex began, lifting and telekinetically spinning a spoon in the air, "Then that is it."

"Not that!" Alex scowled, "I mean, with Alpha Company...where's the others...? Are they...still alive?"

His older counterpart nodded, "Most of them anyway...as time goes by, the High Command and Alpha Company begin to operate a little differently. Not by much, but we don't _always _operate together anymore, mainly because we're so damn big now."

"How many people are there? Like, who else joins?"

"No one you'd know about," the older man replied, in an irritated tone, "Don't worry, you'll meet them soon enough."

"You said that _most _of Alpha Company is alive...do some of us die?"

A dark, grim silence fell over them, and they all emitted a thick air of mourning. Eventually, older Alex responded in a very grim manner, "Everybody who has ever lived dies, that's the circle of frigging life."

"Who does?" Alex asked, worried that he would lose any one of his comrades, especially with memory of Cheet's close call still fresh in his mind.

"Nothing you need to worry about right now," the older man responded with a sigh, "Just enjoy their presence while you still can...now, I'm done talking," and he stood up, heading to get some food, the rest of the High Command, sans the dolphin Ruby, following him.

They stared at each other for several moments before Alex asked her, "Have we met before?"

"Not before this time, I don't think..." she replied.

"You seem...I dunno...familiar."

She grinned warmly, "Probably because we are much closer than you may know...at least right now anyway."

Alex was suddenly aware of Necrodusk awakening deep within his mind, surfacing and exclaiming, "Vitamel...?" but Ruby had already stood up and rejoined her mate in the lunchline. Alex watched, envious, as the two rubbed against one another, their lips meeting in a kiss, and both smiling with a love unfathomably deep between them.

"You're getting the hots for that dolphin, ain't ya?" Piermont asked.

Alex looked towards the rest of Alpha Company, having lost interest in the time travelers and resuming normal conversation amongst themselves. The Commander then turned to face his dragon again, idly stroking his snout.

"You are," and he grinned.

"I can't explain it, Pierre," Alex sighed, "I just...I feel like I know them from somewhere...I know _her _from somewhere..."

"You want her."

Finally, he nodded, "Yeah, I do..."

"Well, at least you now know that you don't die a virgin after all, far from it, as a matter of fact. Shit, man, if they _are _you, and they come from 2014, meaning you oughta be...what? 20? 21 years old? So you managed to claim how many mates between now and then, hot damn, man, wish I could get as lucky as you!"

"Cynder is kinda hot, but I _really _like Ruby...the others I could take or leave."

"Clearly you don't think so in 2014."

"Clearly, but for now? Well, I've made my statement on the matter, can we _please _change the subject now?"

For the rest of the day, the future High Command stayed around them, always at the edge of the crowd, ensuring they didn't remain too close to Alpha Company. Although Alex was puzzled by this, they refused to tell him why, and he eventually gave up in seeking an explanation. That night, they followed him home, taking up residence with he and his family. Although it took some clever explanation to justify the future High Command's stay with them, and took a lot of explanation as to why they looked and acted like future versions of Alpha Company, he _thought _he had managed to sell the idea to his parents. Even if he hadn't, they were no longer questioning it, and Alex was relieved either way, the less he had to say, the better...especially since he didn't want his parents finding out about his apparently unique sexual tastes as he aged into maturity.

Not long after returning home, the future High Command settled themselves in, finding a way to pass the time. Alex was in his room, his music playing over the stereo, laying down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling, when the door to his room slowly opened. He turned to face his visitor, and found the dolphin, Ruby, quietly slip inside, looking around.

"What do you need?" he asked, sitting up in bed.

"Nothing in particular," she replied with a warm smile, "Only exploring."

"Can't say there's nothing of interest here...this place is pretty boring actually..." then, "Where's the rest of your companions?"

"Sleeping," she replied, sitting down on the floor, "Your family went grocery shopping, so it's very quiet here, a little lonely, too."

"Well, for one, why don't you sit up here," and he slapped the mattress beside him, moving out of the way to make room for her to sit, "For another...I've been meaning to talk to you."

"As have I," she replied, plopping down with a cute, tiny squeak.

"How did you and...well me...meet?"

She smiled shyly, blushing, "Well, we first met a long time ago...in the year 1977, when you went back in time for some...reasons..." and she frowned before continuing, "You and me grew to be very close," and she nodded, "_Very _close. Then we were separated...you left...I was kidnapped...it was seven years before we found each other again...we mated soon after, and I was _very _happy...you were happy...we were together."

"Why did we mate? What happened between us that made us fall in love?"

She shrugged, "I don't know...things just...did...I _did _start it though," and she blushed. He noticed that the red blush was traveling throughout her belly.

"What was it like? Mating, I mean."

"It was magical," and she smiled, "To this day it still is..."

"Huh..." he replied, "I wouldn't know, don't really have a girl right now...don't know when I'll get one, to be honest...hopefully I won't have to wait until I'm 21."

"Well...I don't really know how to help you," she sighed, emitting a slow, sad whistle beneath her breath. Suddenly, she stiffened, "Wait, I _do _have an idea..."

"What is it?"

She blushed, looking away, "Um..." and without another word, and after several moments, she shuffled across from him, leaning back and revealing her genital slit, "You can touch...if you want. It's not a lot, but it's something..."

That spike of heat increased, "Seriously?"

She nodded, "Yes, if you want to..."

He fell silent, the blush had completely dominated her lower body, and her slit was well pronounced, bulging from her lower belly. Gently, he touched it, her body was hot, very hot, to the touch, and she hissed, but said nothing. As he touched again, he was alarmed when her genital muscles almost seemed to reach out and grab onto his hand, pulling it inside of her. For a few seconds, he remained in place as she massaged his hand with her hot and moist genital muscles, eventually reaching a brief, but powerful climax, marked by rapid contractions of her interior walls against his hand and a very minute, but surprised squeal from the female. Finally, he withdrew his hand, feeling nothing, and glanced towards the embarrassed dolphin.

"It was sort of like that..." she replied, unable to meet his eyes, "And thank you..."

"No..." he replied, at a loss for words, "Thank _you_...that was...it was quite wonderful...I can't wait until we _do _get together...and manage to do _more_."

She nodded abruptly, smiling shyly, "You will enjoy it, we are very happy together."

"I can only imagine..."

The next day, Alex and Alpha Company piled into the lunch room, finding that the entire student body remained clustered together in the door, blocking passage. A grim air of fear saturated the area, and Alex, curious, shoved his way to the front of the crowd, his eyes widening at what he saw. The lunchroom staff had been gagged, bound, and tied to a few of the columns dotting the room, and at the far end, a black-haired man with deep, mad amber eyes, wielding an M240 heavy machine gun.

"Come on in," he chuckled, "I insist..."

When no one moved, out of fear, the man, his face contorting into a furious glare, fired his weapon in short bursts towards the students' general direction, "Come in here, now!" he spat, "Or death will become of the lot of you."

Seeing no option but compliance, they slowly entered the room, single-file, the man, Zack, training his weapon on every body that entered, taking seats at the tables. Alex and the rest of Alpha, thankfully in their human forms, slipped in with the crowd, hoping they were identified. Taking a seat at the table at the far left of the cafeteria, they managed to discreetly slip under the table, thankfully covered with a table cloth that dangled over the side, concealing them, as the crazed gunman roared, "Alex Vaughn! I know you're in here! Speak now, or I will slaughter every single one of these worthless children until I find you!"

Alex peeked out from his hiding place, carefully observing the man, who was patrolling the cafeteria. No one spoke, and after several seconds, when he _still _received no answer, the man, with a furious roar, turned his M240 to the ceiling and fired off several bursts, scattering the horrified children and driving them into whatever cover they could find, and sending Alex pulling back into the cover supplied by the tablecloth.

"ZACK!" Older Alex roared from somewhere nearby, and Alex heard the black dragon's rider chuckle.

"Late to the party, as always, aren't you, Ali?"

"Leave these kids out of it!" the older Commander roared.

"Not until your little doppelgänger turns up!"

"These kids are not involved here! Leave them out of it!"

"Quiet!" he hissed, and Alex flinched as he heard Zack fire his HMG once again. The Commander said nothing, remaining rooted in place and praying for safety. "Do not come any closer, Ali. For every step you take towards me, another child dies, you understand?"

"It's me you want!" older Alex roared, "Fight me like a man!"

"I'm afraid that bird has already flown!"

Alex exchanged nervous glances with the rest of his comrades, as Piermont thought to him, _We're gonna die here...aren't we?_

_Don't say that, _Alex attempted to comfort, _We'll be okay, don't worry._

"I see you!" Zack cackled, unloading another several bursts from his HMG, abruptly causing Alex and Alpha Company to flinch and stiffen, fearing they had been caught. When the gunman did not appear, they remained in place for several moments, Alex trying to think of something to do, when Zack spoke again, "Better yet, if you or your dragon approach me, I'll kill a child for every step you take, since you know and understand this game very well, don't you? I'm sure this isn't the first time you've played, am I right? That is, pending I understand how time travel operates, which I may not, who knows? Alas, I digress, dear boy. For every step you or that jaded demon take towards me, a child dies. If, however, I see one of your so-called friends, I take out, not a child, but your own companions. You have three choices, Ali, leave, kill a child, or have the blood of another one of your lifelong companions stain your filthy hands! The choice is yours!"

Alex's mind was racing, clouded by fear and confusing his thoughts as it was. He desperately searched for something to do, a way to escape, unscathed. He visibly shrank back when his older self relayed a powerful telepathic message to him, _Get down, hide under one of these tables, don't let him find you, I'm going to see about moving up_.

_Why can't I just run out of here?_ Alex asked.

_Because if he's here, then I wouldn't doubt his dragon is waiting just outside, probably also laying in wait until you surface. Right now, it's safer here, keep the rest of Alpha Company with you, I'll let you know when it's safe to emerge._

Alex turned to face his companions, relaying his older self's message to them.

_What the hell, man!? _Piermont exclaimed, _We're just gonna sit here and wait? We're as good as dead if we stay here!_

_And we're as good as dead if we leave! Stay here and wait until it's safe!_

_We're hostages! It ain't gonna be safe until either _HE _dies! Or _we _die! Simple as that! _Piermont spat.

_SHUT UP! _Alex's mental voice boomed towards his dragon, _Just...shut up! Give me a moment to think..._

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Zack sang in a singsong tune, "I know you're out there, little Ali..." and he uttered another grisly, gritty chuckle.

They remained hidden for what seemed like hours, terrified and needing to find a way to escape, but too afraid to move, and too paralyzed in their fear to come up with something.

"Are you still here?" Zack taunted, "Old Ali, I'm referring to you, speak now or forever hold your peace," and when no one responded, he chuckled once again.

After several more minutes, Alex's mind was assaulted by his older self's mental voice, weary and exhausted, _I need your help..._

_What do you need? _Alex anxiously responded.

_I'm directly beneath him, but I can't neutralize him without some help. I'm approximately four feet in, from the north side of the table, let me know when he's directly above me, understand?_

_I...I think so...what do I do? _and Alex peered out through the tablecloth, observing Zack, who was standing atop a table at the far end of the room, closest to the kitchen, patrolling back and forth across it.

_Just let me know when he's above me! I don't care how!_

_Oh...okay then..._

_Listen to me, it is _very _important that you tell me _exactly _when he's above me, if you don't, you, and everyone else here, is as good as dead!_

_I understand...I understand... _but Alex was still frightened, and no matter how hard he tried, he knew that he could not mask that fear, and he hated himself for it.

_Where is he? _older Alex thought out to him.

_He's heading towards you..._

_ETA?_

_Uh...I...I don't know...um...maybe like...thirty seconds at the most?_

_Damn it!_

_Don't worry! Don't worry...I'll let you know when he's there... _Alex kept his eye on the patrolling gunman, now approaching the north side of the table, and when he was about half way across, Alex sought out his older self's mental presence, saying, _Ten seconds...give or take... _and as soon as Zack was about to rotate on his heels to approach the south side, Alex cried out, _NOW!_

He watched as his older self dove out of cover, launching up and tackling Zackm knocking both of them off the table. They both hit the ground, out of Alex's line of sight, and he flinched as he heard an assault rifle discharge. Alex slowly began to emerge from cover, heading to help his older self, when he heard a loud _crack_ and watched as Zack picked himself up, walking towards a column near him.

From out of nowhere, Alex heard Ruby cry, "No!" and he watched as she jumped out of cover behind one of the tables between Alex and Zack, ramming into the gunman's side, knocking him to the ground. Alex watched as Ruby, sitting on top of him, presumably exchanged blows. He could see the dolphin, who he assumed was sitting on the gunman, but could not see the man himself, only the dolphin punching towards the floor. With a furious flurry of cackles and whistles, she unleashed a rapid and vicious barrage of strikes. Alex watched as Zack headbutted the dolphin in the face, stunning her, then delivered a swift kick to her belly, sending her stumbling back as he picked himself up, approaching her again, withdrawing a knife from its sheathe on his belt.

"You stupid creature..." Zack growled, "I should have killed you on the _Atlantis_!"

"RUBY!" the male dolphin roared, and Alex watched as, from out of nowhere, the bull tackled Zack, sending him to the floor and out of Alex's line of sight again. Not a few seconds later, the rest of the future High Command piled onto him, and Alex watched as his older self picked up the dropped M240, discarding the belt and tossing the empty weapon across the cafeteria, it slid to a stop, coincidentally, near the table Alpha Company was hiding beneath.

Zack, presumably still on the ground since the Commander could not see him anywhere else, let loose a mad bellow of laughter, "Oh, the thrill of the hunt! The thrill of resistance! A feeling I have missed!"

"Shaddup, you zealous prick!" older Piermont hissed, approaching and punching Zack in the face, stumbling him.

"Oh..." Zack began again, laughing wildly, recovering from older Piermont's dazing blow, "But the fight...it's not over yet!" and he turned his head to the sky, screaming at the top of his lungs, "PYRE! TO _ME!_"

"Oh shit! I forgot the bat!" older Piermont exclaimed, hitting the ground as, with a bellowing roar, the massive black dragon ripped through the ceiling of the cafeteria, landing on the ground and charging towards the future High Command, clustered together at the south end of the cafeteria. Alex rapidly withdrew his P2K, keeping in a crouch and racing towards where the fight was going on, wanting to do his part to save the day.

"You ain't getting away from us this time!" older Alex shouted, and Alex peered out from cover to see Zack already mounted on his beast, and the Commander's older counterpart sprinting towards the gunman.

"Let's go!" Zack spat, and Pyre rocketed out of the hole, mere seconds later, a jet of white fire burst through the hole, forcing the Commander to shield his eyes against the light. Once he could see again, Alex watched as his older self, now mounted on Piermont, the rest of the future High Command around, launched through the hole and into the skies.

"No!" Alex exclaimed, racing out of the cafeteria, Alpha Company scurrying out of cover and running to catch up to him. The Commander bust through the school doors, shielding his eyes against the sun as the black dragon rapidly flapped away, the rest of the future High Command in tow.

The rest of Alpha Company, out of breath, finally caught up to him, and Piermont said, "Christ, man! Let us know before you do something stupid like that again..."

They watched as the future High Command disappeared over the horizon, and Cheet asked, "Should we give chase?"

Silence for several moments from Alex before he finally responded, "No...they've got it."

After the air had calmed, and the cries of the two clashing dragons completely faded away, Piermont chuckled, and Alex turned to face him, "Well...that was fun. What's next?"

Alex only shook his head, turning his eyes back towards the direction where the future High Command had vanished, feeling an indescribable sadness at their departure, especially Ruby's, and he found himself wondering when he was going to meet her again, hoping that he didn't have to wait _too _long.

With a sigh, he turned around and reentered the building, the rest of Alpha Company, sans Piermont, in tow. Piermont only remained in the doorway, jaw dropped, aghast, "What? What did I say?" before he abruptly sprinted back into the school, racing to catch up to his rider.


	13. Chapter XIII: The Fall of the LKA

_**Chapter XIII**_**:**

**-''The Fall of the LKA''-**

**-Cartoon City, Montana-**

**-**_**16 May 2005**_**-**

**-**_**1318 Hours**_**-**

Alex sat at a picnic table just outside of the local burger joint, sipping at his soda, lost in thought. Part of him was elated by the fact that he wouldn't be alone and single forever, but another part of him was unsure how exactly he felt with the knowledge that he would have multiple partners, all animalian. It didn't help that _two _of his romantic partners were male. Piermont would not let him hear the end of it, and perhaps it was funny, unfortunately, he was more embarrassed with it than anything else.

"Still thinking about your boyfriends?" a human Piermont snickered, taking a seat beside him, taking a large bite out of his cheeseburger.

"Fuck you," Alex sighed, "It's not like I knew it was gonna happen, _or _had a choice..." and he found his memory returning to the dolphin, Ruby. Something seemed very special about her, and he found himself missing her deeply, excited for when they would finally be together.

"Still man, c'mon, think about it! How come you're _gay_?"

"I'm not _gay_," he spat, "At worst, I'm bisexual, apparently."

"Still though! It's still you wanting to bone another dude! That's not right man!"

Alex sighed again, "I don't wanna talk about it...besides, they ain't who I'm thinking about anyway."

"Kayden, I'll play your little game...who _are _you thinking about?"

Silence for a few moments before, "The dolphin...the girl, I mean...Ruby."

"What about her?"

He shrugged, "I dunno, there's just...there's something special about her, y'know? I kinda miss her..."

"And yet you think nothing about the fact that you boned a _My Little Pony_?"

The Commander glared at his dragon.

"Right, right, sorry, you can't help yourself...anyway, what's so special about that chick?"

He shrugged again, "I don't know...there just...there is."

"So...you love her, but you don't know how or why?"

He nodded slowly, not looking up from his drink. Piermont scrutinized him before his examining eyes suddenly widened with realization, "Wait a minute..."

"What?" Alex spat.

Piermont continued examining him before chuckling, "Did...did you get laid?"

"No!" he scowled, "Why the hell would you think that?"

"I can read it...in your aura..." and he cocked his head to the side.

"You can see in auras?" and Alex scoffed.

Suddenly, the Commander stiffened as he felt a heavy presence fall upon him. Shortly after, he felt himself become light as a feather, as if his soul was leaving his body. He blinked, and was alarmed to find himself viewing the world as if through a fisheye lens. Everything around him glowed in a faint aura of varying colors. Children seemed to have primarily yellow auras, while adults had primarily red, and the Commander turned to face his dragon, surrounded in a deep green aura with golden spots, he then realized that he was seeing the world through a dragon's vision. "You tell me," Piermont replied.

Alex blinked again and the warped vision vanished, "How can you tell through auras?"

"If you're pure, it's a pure color aura. Each and every living thing has their own individual aura...although the colors and intensity differ from one another. Some colors I can see, however, are part of the spectrum that no human is capable of, literally, _every single living thing _has their own unique aura. No two are alike."

"But yours, yours wasn't pure."

Piermont grinned like an embarrassed schoolboy, and Alex's jaw dropped, "You mated Cherub!?"

His grin became wider, "Happened a couple of weeks ago."

"Why didn't you _tell _me?"

"Why would I? Not important to you."

Alex, still in shock, sighed and returned to the topic at hand, "How can you think I'm not a virgin anymore?"

"Simple, before they came here, your aura was a shade of pure red...now I see little spots of gray in it."

Alex shook his head, "Impossible, I never did anything."

"Hmm..." Piermont replied, then, "Wait a minute...did you commit any sexual acts with anyone? Can be _any _kind, not just actual...y'know...sex."

"What do you mean?"

"Well...there's a little dark green in your aura, from our...private sessions. So if you pleasured someone, that _might _have an effect on your aura."

Alex then remembered when he masturbated Ruby, "Oh shit..."

"What?"

Alex debated whether or not to tell his dragon what happened for several minutes before, with a sigh, responding, "I did...rub Ruby off...when she was here."

Piermont raised an eyebrow, "Really now?"

Alex looked away, embarrassed.

"Damn..."

"That's all I did, however, nothing else."

"I see..." then he grinned again, "Speaking of which, just so you don't worry, that blue dolphin, Sapphire or whatever...yeah, he's not your mate. His aura was not mingled in any way, shape, or form, with your future self's. So either he has the hots for you, but you haven't done anything, or he was just dicking around with you, not sure."

Alex sighed, "Well that's a relief...what about Spyro?"

Piermont fell silent, "Well...um...how can I put this easily..."

Alex scoffed, "Don't even bother," and he groaned, "So we _are _mates then?"

"Yeah..."

"Dammit."

"Clearly it wasn't _all _bad, else you two wouldn't have done it in the first place."

Alex glared at him, Piermont only raised his hands in surrender.

"Hey, ain't gonna judge, to each their own."

"So..." Alex began, changing the subject, "You finally screwed Cherub, huh?"

"Hell yeah."

"How the hell did _that _start?"

Piermont shrugged, "Well, we were messing around with each other, she touched me in such a way that I got turned on and fell out. Next thing I know, I'm on my back, she's on top of me with her mouth planted around my cock, and I'm staring at her puss...and boy was she aroused. Things kinda escalated from there...and...yeah."

"Too much information..."

"What? You asked!"

"Did she settle for the blowjob or did you guys actually fuck?"

"Heh...first time was oral, good ol' fashioned 69, second time was the legit thing."

"Lucky you."

"Hey, you'll get your chance...not just with one, but _four_, you lucky bastard...even if one of them _was _a dude..." and Alex elbowed him.

"Bet my older self's aura was a regular rainbow then, huh?"

"Well...there were spots of different colors for each of your mates in there...but your aura was a bright, bright, BRIGHT blood red. Very intense. Usually trauma or stress tends to intensify auras, meaning that whatever you go through between now and then is gonna be hell, like worse than what you have dealt with already."

"Great, how reassuring."

"Well...you're still alive at least, right?"

"God dammit."

"Can't be _too _bad, now can it?"

Later that day, Alpha Company was called to the command center located in the heart of Cartoon City's military district. Upon their entry, they spied Elliot looking at a projection on the wall showing a blueprint of Junior Town, one of the Quads, wearing a wide grin.

"Hell you lookin' at?" Piermont asked, "Porn?"

"Sorry, kiddo, ain't into child pornography...unlike a certain dragon I know."

"What? Cherub?" and the female dragon responded by elbowing him playfully. Alex turned to face her, watching as both she and Piermont rubbed against one another affectionately, their tails tangled together, a dragonian sign of affection, sure enough, they were mates, or at least romantically involved with one another.

Elliot sighed, shaking his head, before turning to face the projection again, "No, we found the LKA's headquarters."

"Thought that was that prison over in Chicago?" Cheet asked.

"Nope," Elliot responded, "Least, not after 'No-Tongue' fell."

"So what is it then?" Piermont asked.

"Clearly it's in Junior Town," Alex spat.

Elliot pointed at the Commander, "Exactly, or rather, the city _is _their headquarters...since your little brother took over anyway," Elliot chuckled, "And regardless of whether or not he's involved with them anymore, the LKA is still headquartered there."

"Hell do you know?

"Classified," Elliot replied, "Can't tell you...primarily because it's a bit...eh...illegal...how we found out. Anyway, as I was saying, the LKA have a sprawling underground complex that runs beneath central Junior Town, late last night, I sent our special ops down there, found that the LKA were pumping nerve gas, for reasons I don't quite know, and frankly, I don't really care...it's bad news. Guys took care of that little problem...flooded the whole damn expanse in the stuff, real nasty shit, drove the majority of the LKA above ground. Alpha is going in there, with a little help from Gamma and Delta Companies, and maybe Beta and Epsilon as well, not sure at the moment. Anyway, you guys are gonna be our cleanup crew, go in there, clean up the remnant."

"So, you have already decimated them, you just want us to finish what you started."

"Not necessarily...the LKA have established a surprisingly well defended military district near the heart of the city, somehow managing to also keep their operations under the radar. Your job is to cut through the dug-in forces, break through their defenses into the military district, ransack wherever their command center is for Intelligence, then decimate anything and everything else you come across. The LKA is a worldwide militia, which means that I wouldn't doubt they have more than one headquarters...Junior Town just seems to be their _central _base."

"Damn it, taking all the fun away from us ain't you, champ?" Piermont replied.

"Fuck off," the general responded bitterly, "This should be easy as hell for you guys, figured you'd want to get some personal revenge on the LKA for the cub's near miss a while back and Rapid's death. If you don't want to participate, then god damn, I'll just go in there and burn the place down myself, your choice."

Alex grinned, popping his neck, "Oh, don't worry about us, they're never gonna know what hit 'em."

"Atta boy!"

Within two hours, Alpha Company, mounted upon a column of Tiger II tanks, rolled passed the checkpoint leaving Cartoon City, through the DMZ, and into Junior Town, already in flames. The citizens fled in terror as, with a sign from Alex's tank at the column's head, the column proceeded to fire upon every structure that came into view. The LKA emerged from out of the woodwork, firing towards the invading militia, but their advance was relentless. Once the reached the main street cutting through Junior Town, Alex made his way across the tank, taking a position on the machine's docked M240, opening fire on everything and everyone in their path. It didn't take long for the LKA to pull back and retreat deeper into the city.

"Keep on 'em!" Alex roared with a grim chuckle, "Give them something to worry about!"

A booming dragon's roar of challenge broke the eerie silence between breaks in combat as Beta Company arrived, spearheaded by Piermont and Cherub, flaming the dug-in LKA around Alex's column that the tanks missed, and within seconds another roar sounded, and Alex looked to the smoky skies, spying Elliot, mounted upon his dragon, Damian, rocket into the air above Cartoon City, heading for her eastern neighbor. While he fired relentlessly into the onslaught of LKA troops and supporters, driving them deeper in, the Commander realized that they were very unorganized, and he realized that there was no leader commanding their numbers.

"Whaddya know," Alex replied over his radio, "Seems the LKA is a bit of a headless chicken!"

"Not surprised," Elliot snorted, "'No-Tongue' was their commander, and he's been down for years. So far, no one has managed to fill the vacuum left by his absence, and I doubt he made the position he once had very user-friendly and easy to access. Bastard thought he was invincible and had his own way of doing things, definitely your out-of-the-box thinker."

"At least it seems your bro pulled out," Crash replied with a chuckle.

Alex chuckled, "From what I heard, he didn't depart completely, just created a subset of the LKA, what he calls the Revolution...we've been keeping tabs on him."

Within an hour, they reached the center of town, spying the tall stone walls that surrounded the perimeter of Junior Town's military district, and the LKA's primary fortress.

"Blow through the walls!" Alex growled, "Don't let anything stand in our way!"

"Like it's gonna matter anyway?" Crash replied.

"Do it!"

The tanks gathered before the gates, and with a call to fire from the Commander, they all fired upon the steel blast doors in unison. Once the smoke cleared, revealing a massive breach where the gates once were, Alex ordered them to continue their advance and roll into the city. While Alex mercilessly gunned down the retreating LKA, he laughed maniacally, exclaiming, "HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT MOTHERFUCKERS!? NOT SO FUN NOW IS IT?"

"Christ..." Crash began, shaking his head, "Don't you think you're going a bit overboard, Alex?"

"Nonsense!" the Commander replied with a laugh, "These sons of bitches had it coming! This is what they get for fucking with the Great Commander Alex Vaughn!"

Crash, his jaw dropped in shock, turned to face the rest of the tank's occupants, all wearing grim, sober expressions.

"Hell you guys doing down there?" Alex boomed, "Keep firing!"

With reluctance, the main gunner, an officer of Delta Company, resumed his position at the cannon, firing towards a column of LKA tanks come to defend the training fields. The Terminator tanks, armored with steel plates crafted from the same material used for the City Minecrawlers of Swizzle Firma, resisted the shelling of the enemy Abrams, taking them down with ease. Whenever the LKA's armor or artillery became too much to handle, all they had to do was hold for one of the many wings of dragons and riders in the skies to flame the positions from the sky, neutralizing them in seconds.

Soon, they reached the main facility, the command center near the geographical center of Junior Town, already surrounded on all sides by dozens of Terminator tanks. Dragons were flaming mortar, sniper, anti-armor, and HMG positions that had settled on the rooftop, while the tanks hammered relentlessly into the adobe building, surprisingly resilient to the heavy shelling. Once the Terminator-friendly _Nebelwerfer _batteries arrived, however, the building was ripped to shreds almost instantly.

Heavily damaged beyond repair, and with no more enemy fire coming down on them from the LKA's command center, Alex's column, along with several others, dismounted from their tanks and took to their feet, storming through the battered walls of the command center, cleaning out any opposition on the inside. Many of the soldiers and scientists inside were not threatening, either having surrendered, only to be mercilessly shepherded into lines and executed by Terminator firing squads, or too shell-shocked and frightened to do little but cower in place, shying away from the ruthless fireteams. Alex, clad in his battle dress uniform, wandered inside, flanked on either side by the rest of his tank squad, including Crash and Cheet, firing his AK47 at any and everyone he saw, regardless of whether or not they were hostile to him. Around him, those who weren't shooting them, bloodied and battered, had surrendered, or were too stunned to fight, crawled across the floor, missing limbs or bleeding profusely from fatal injuries, leaving trails of red in their wake before collapsing for the last time. Whenever Alex came across these, he merely executed them where they lay. Once soldier, a corporal by his rank, was sobbing as he clawed his way towards the Commander, extending a bloodied hand, missing two fingers, and pleading for mercy.

Alex grinned maliciously, placing the barrel of his AK47 against the man's forehead and pulling the trigger, firing a single shot through his eyes and out the back of his head in a spray of red. Crash, wearing a concerned and distrustful expression, turned to face the rest of his squadmates, also uneasy. Cheet seemed the only one not as disturbed by the event, as he wore a grim expression, and kept marching on, his head held high. Eventually, they reached the war room, finding the highest ranking LKA officer they had seen that day, a lieutenant colonel, already surrounded and being tortured by Gamma Company grunts.

He chuckled, restrained to the table by three other grunts, his arm laying outstretched before him, held in place, "You monsters really think that this will change anything?"

"No," the Gamma Company squad's leader responded, wearing a twisted grin, "But it will make us feel one hell of a lot better," and he sliced cleanly through the officer's index finger with his KA-BAR, causing the man to exclaim in pain, and growl through clenched teeth.

"You bastards! Killing me will do nothing!"

"Probably not, but shit is it fun..." and as the officer placed the barrel of a Luger against the man's forehead, about to pull the trigger, Alex shoved his way through.

"Gonna start the fun without me?"

The officer stiffened and turned to face the Commander, saluting, "Commander Vaughn, I didn't see you, sir!"

"Put your hand down sergeant," Alex spat, approaching the bloodied colonel, grabbing the back of his head and slamming his forehead down onto the table, "Tell me, Colonel, how does it feel to see your entire empire crumble to the ground, to see everything you ever worked and bled for come down in flames?"

"I have nothing to say to you, idiot boy!"

"Aww, that's not very nice, is it?" Alex responded in a singsong tone, smashing the butt of his AK across the man's temple, sending his head snapping painfully to the side. Dazed, the colonel struggled to catch his breath, and Alex forcefully grabbed his head, forcing the man to look up towards him, "Give my regards to 'No-Tongue' bitch!" and withdrawing his KA-BAR, he grabbed the man by the hair, forcing his chin up and swiftly slicing through his throat in a spray of blood. Crash looked away, covering his mouth, the rest of their squad looked away in horror, only Cheet remained watching, his expression never changing. Once the jets of blood from the Colonel's open throat began to recede, Alex let go of the man's hair, his head slamming loosely against the glass table, blood gathering in a pool and dripping onto the tile floor. Wearing a grim smile, Alex growled to the sergeant, "Salvage whatever you can from this place and blow it to hell..." then turning to face the rest of his companions, "Our work is done here, let's go," and he shoved his way through his squad and out the door.

"Remind me to never piss him off," the sergeant replied, "Mother of Christ..."

Crash said nothing, his jaw dropped, "I can't believe I'm working with this monster..."

"I'm starting to have my doubts, too..." the tank gunner replied, "This kinda brutality..." and he shook his head, "I've never seen anything like it before...and I was a Marine for 20 years...we sure we're on the right side here?"

"He had it coming," Cheet responded, proceeding to follow Alex out the door.

"You can't tell me that this is right, can you, Cheet?" Crash exclaimed, "I mean, really!?"

The cub did not respond, and exchanging stunned glances with the rest of his companions, Crash, with a heavy sigh, followed out the door, the rest of their squad in tow.


	14. Chapter XIV: Rudolph

_**Chapter XIV**_**:**

**-''Rudolph''-**

**-Above the Arctic Circle-**

**-**_**15 December 2005**_**-**

**-**_**2122 Hours**_**-**

In the cold, snowy skies above the Arctic Circle, a single plane, as black as night, flew above the seemingly endless ice floes. Inside of it, Alex and Cheet were monitoring the surface below them for any abnormalities, as their reconnaissance plane hunted for an LKA stronghold and training camp rumored to hide amidst the glaciers and coniferous forests around Earth's northern axis.

"We absolutely sure there's somethin' here?" Cheet asked.

"Elliot said that the Intel we ransacked from Junior Town a few months ago pointed to two other LKA strongholds still around...and while he tries to derive information on the last surviving fortress from the fragmented data we got, we're stuck flying circles around the North fucking Pole."

"Sounds like a wild goose chase," Cheet remarked, "Fantastic..."

"Yeah, I know Cheet, I ain't very happy about it either, but what can we do?"

"Well...you _could _tell him off, since you're above him in rank, technically speaking."

"If you're going to discuss technical ranks, _you _rank above him, too."

"Yeah...but he basically saved my life, not saying you guys weren't the ones busting me out of that frozen wasteland...but you get my point. Anyway, he saved my life, I'm not gonna piss him off."

"I think similarly, mate, you know as well as I do that _nobody _challenge Elliot."

Cheet only sighed.

"Besides, we need the action, can't stand just sitting around twiddling my thumbs...and since we blew away the LKA last summer, I've been bored as hell, trying to keep from losing my fucking mind."

"Reminds me..." the young cheetah began, "Why is it _always _the frozen wastes? Why can't the LKA take up residence down in the desert or...God forbid...the tropics."

"Probably because nobody likes the cold, so its easier for them to remain outta sight, meaning nobody can find them or even know they're there."

"And yet here we are..."

"Well...there _are _exceptions..."

Cheet sighed again, "I'm just praying that the last LKA base _isn't _in some goddamned freezer..._again_, else _next _time, you can hit it solo. I'm a cheetah, I come from the desert where its hot and dry, I wasn't born suited for the cold...and frankly, I don't wanna freeze my balls off through this fur which does not make an effective coat."

"Bah! You don't have a girlfriend."

"Oh fuck you."

"No thanks...not into guys...or cats."

"Our _Back to the Future _visitors tend to say otherwise."

Alex did not respond.

"So..." Cheet began after several moments of silence, "Did you _really _get turned on by Kiara?"

"Long story..." Alex sighed, "I'd rather not think about it."

The young cheetah only grinned in response, "C'mon, we're both guys here...why were you touching her kitty anyway?"

"It was an accident, happened while we were trying to pull _your _ass out of Schmerzen."

"Okay, okay, I give, I give..."

"Thank you, now can we drop the subject?"

"Uh...don't want to interrupt you two," one of the technicians began, "But I'm getting some readings from down below."

"What kinda readings?" Alex asked.

"Looks like radio waves."

"Hmm..."

"Probably solar rays," the pilot began, "Been a lotta solar flares the past few weeks."

"I'd rather not discount the chance," Alex began, "Take us down there."

"Yes, sir."

As the plane lowered and commenced another pass, they heard the rapid staccato of anti-aircraft weapons. The plane shook violently, they heard muffled explosions, and alarms all throughout the craft began to blare.

"What the hell!?" Alex exclaimed.

"Shit! We've been hit!" the pilot began, "Right engine's fried, we're going down!"

"Pull up! Pull up, goddammit!"

"I'm trying!" the pilot began, "But she ain't resp-" and he was cut off as the anti-aircraft guns fired again, several bullets ripping through the windshield. Alex recoiled as the pilot's body spastically twitched as several rounds ripped through him before he fell forward, lifeless.

"Jesus fucking Christ!" one of the technicians began, making his way towards the cockpit as several more rounds ripped through the hull of the aircraft like tissue paper.

"This isn't good!" Alex exclaimed, "Cheet, hold on!"

"Already am as much as I can!" the cheetah exclaimed, terrified.

Soon after, the plane was ripped completely in half by the enemy fire, and Alex watched, in horror, as the front half of the plane detached from the back half, where they were, taking all but one of the crew with it. "Help me!" the man who had moved to take over the controls, "Somebody _help!_" but before they could do anything, the front half of the fuselage disappeared beneath the canopy of the coniferous forest beneath them.

"Oh _CRAP_!" Alex roared as they neared closer and closer to the ground until, as he squeezed his eyes shut, reaching and grabbing onto the cheetah, they impacted and consciousness winked out.

Alex slowly came to, in a daze.

His whole body ached and burned, and as he felt the tickle of healing across his body, he glanced around weak, his vision blurry. All he heard was the crackling of fires, and he could barely, through his unclear vision, make out the wreckage of the crashed aircraft, burning bright and hot against the winter cold...at least something to be thankful for.

He groaned, beginning, his voice hoarse and slurred, "Cheet? Cheet are you okay?"

When the cub didn't respond, he moved to sit up, but found that he hurt too much to move, and he collapsed again soon after, hitting his head against whatever he was laying on and causing his vision to warp and distort, with blackness slowly creeping in from around the edges of his vision, threatening to send him spiraling into the void of unconsciousness again. He held on for as long as he could, but found that it was too exhausting to stay awake, and he soon surrendered to the void, but not before spying an unnatural red light fall upon him, and a silhouetted, incomprehensible shape emerge from the brush, approaching him.

The sound of a roaring, but controlled, fire roused him from the encompassing darkness, and Alex slowly opened his eyes. Finding the strength to at least sit up, he did, and blinking away the exhaustion, he was alarmed to find himself, not stranded in the wild, untamed forests of the Arctic Circle, but in a small but cozy hut, laying in a straw bed. He sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for his strength to return, and he turned to his right, looking out the window outside that overlooked his bed. A faint snow drizzled down from the dark skies.

"Cheet?" the Commander asked, "Where are you? Cheet? _Cheet!?_"

"Calm down," a shy voice began, causing Alex to stiffen, "Gather your strength, your little cat friend is okay."

Alex abruptly turned to face the source of his voice, his eyes widening with alarm and disbelief at who he saw standing before him: a reindeer, with four points of antlers upon his head. The reindeer himself was smaller in comparison to what Alex expected adults of his species would be, proving his youth, and it only took one look at his face to identify the animal's name. The Commander grinned, "Wow...Rudolph the fucking Red-Nosed Reindeer...and here I was thinking I'd seen everything..." and, with a groan, he fell back onto the bed, placing his arm over his face, "What in the actual..."

"How do you know me?" the reindeer interrupted, and Alex looked towards him, surprised.

"You serious? Who _doesn't _know you, is the better question..." and he fell silent for a few moments before saying, "Wait a tic...I should have known you were real...as if Prancy hasn't mentioned you a dozen times."

"Prancy's alive?" Rudolph asked, genuinely in shock.

"Yeah...he's perfectly fine, hanging with us back in Cartoon City..." then, "Why do you ask? Figured he was just bullshitting since you two _obviously _don't live together."

Rudolph adopted a sad expression and looked towards the ground, "He was taken from us several years ago...by hunters...mom and dad thought he was dead..."

"Shit...I thought you, being the holly, jolly Christmas icon, wouldn't be so damn melancholic..."

"He gets that way sometimes," a female voice spoke up, surprising Alex yet again, and Rudolph rotated around, stepping out of the way to allow its source to enter...a young doe, with a bright red, white polka-dot bow on her head.

"Really, Clarice?"

"Yes, really," she replied with a giggle, and she turned to face the Commander, "Don't mind him."

Alex shook his head, rubbing his eyes. When the two did not disappear, he smirked, looking away, "Okay, I'm either dead, dreaming, or high as a fucking kite."

"Well, you're definitely not dead or dreaming," the female, Clarice, replied.

"Great, so I'm high as a fucking kite..." and he forced a half-grin, half-grimace, "Fuck did you guys put me on?"

"Nothing," Rudolph replied, sounding offended, "We found you and that cheetah in the wreckage of that plane, and brought you here before you froze to death in the blizzard."

"Where _is _my cheetah?" Alex growled, instinctively reaching at his waist, where his firearm, not present, would normally be.

"I'm fine, Alex, don't worry!" an energetic Cheet replied, squeezing between the two reindeer blocking the door between Alex's room and the one beyond. The cheetah, with one of his limbs and the side of his head bandaged, was licking his chops, eating something, "They're friendly!"

"What the_ hell _is going on here?" Alex asked spitefully, and he suddenly thought for a few moments before adding, "Wait...if _you _guys are here..." and he grinned, "Shit, Cheet, we should go find Santa Claus and convince him to give us presents early this year."

Rudolph shook his head with a sigh, Clarice closing her eyes and shaking her head. Cheet, on the other hand, found this to be quite amusing, and was cackling wild laughter, "You're right, Alex! We should!"

"Good to see you're healthy..." Rudolph finally managed.

"Right...right...my bad..." then, Alex asked, "So...where are we?"

"In the old hunting and fishing shack the elves use..." Clarice began, "There's a big winter storm out there, and we wouldn't have been able to get you back to the workshop before it struck, so we brought you here, for now."

"I just want to get back home," Alex growled.

"Well, when the storm passes," the doe continued, "We'll take you to the workshop, have the doctors check you over to make sure you're okay, then you can be on your merry way back home, how does that sound?"

"Still means we're stuck here for Christ knows how long..."

"It won't be _too _bad, Alex," Cheet remarked, hopping onto the bed and settling himself in Alex's lap, nudging the Commander's hand onto his head. Alex, with a small grin, responded by petting the cheetah who, purring, rolled onto his side, allowing Alex to scratch his belly, "At least we're out of the cold!"

Alex then, remembering their mission and why they came here in the _first _place, suddenly asked, "Hey, you two know if what we're looking for is here?"

"Depends on what it is," Clarice replied, and Rudolph nodded.

"Uh..." and Alex thought for a few moments, "It would probably be a human building, probably pretty big but bland, maybe has a fenced in compound, spotlights mounted on towers, stuff like that. Lots of humans wearing similar outfits to me walking around at all hours of the day? Maybe some strange sounds if they're firing their guns, shit like that?"

The two reindeer exchanged uneasy glances.

"What does that mean?" Alex asked, suddenly weary.

They turned to face him again, and Rudolph began in a grave tone, "Yes, I know _exactly _what you're talking about..."

Clarice added, "We were going for a walk one day when we stumbled across what you're talking about...they shot at us, one of their shots grazed Rudolph's side," and he nodded in confirmation.

"So the LKA _are _here..." Cheet replied unhappily, "Damn it...which means we have to take down their base before we can leave."

"Fuck that," Alex spat, "I'll just have these guys lead us to the base, we'll flag it and send the coordinates to Elliot to take down. Frankly, I don't feel like dicking around with the LKA right now. Actually, I just want to go home."

"Even if we _did_ flag it for Elliot," Cheet began, "He'd just tell us to destroy it anyway since we're in the area...and you _know _that's what he'd do Alex. You might as well just take it down then return home with news of its destruction...Elliot would be proud that he didn't have to tell us to do anything, especially since, regardless of whether or not we tell him about before or after we storm it, he'll send us down here again anyway."

Alex sighed, "Guess you're right..."

"You're going to destroy that place?" Rudolph asked, suddenly sounding excited.

"Yeah..." Alex replied, "We got sent to this hellhole in the _first _place to see if the base exists or not...now we know it does...might as well take it down before we head back home."

"Can I help?" and Clarice turned to face her male companion, jaw dropped, astounded.

Alex cocked his head to the side, then, with a wide grin and a light chuckle, "You _really _want to help us take down the LKA? Dude, are you even _capable _of killing them? You do realize that taking down the base means, not only blowing the whole damn thing sky high, but killing everything and everyone that gets in our way."

Rudolph nodded solemnly, "I know..."

"Shocking..."

"Someday, I want to join the Terminator Militia, maybe even Alpha Company...it'll probably be something I have to get used to anyway."

"Wait...you're looking to join Alpha Company?"

He nodded, "Yeah...they seem really cool and friendly."

Alex's jaw dropped, in shock, while Cheet broke out into another fit of giggles, "You know who we are...right?"

He shook his head, "No."

The Commander grinned widely, "Well then..." and he stood tall and erect, wincing at his back popped, sending a fresh wave of pain through his body, "Great Commander Alex Vaughn at your service, founder of the Terminator Militia and commander of the Terminator High Command and, consequently, Alpha Company."

Rudolph seemed surprised, "Really? _You _are _the _Commander Alex Vaughn?"

Alex nodded, and Cheet giggled once more.

"Wow...I didn't know..."

"So...how about this...you take us to this base, help us destroy it, then both you and your girlfriend can come with us back to Cartoon City and join the ranks of Alpha Co. How's that sound?"

"I would love to!" Rudolph replied, smiling.

"Why?" Clarice began, "It's awfully dangerous..."

"I've always dreamed of being one of them," he replied, "Especially after hearing all the stuff they do for people."

"You'd have to kill others...and you'd be in constant danger..."

"I know," he replied.

She shook her head, sounding hurt, "Fine then...you can run off and join, but I'm not leaving..."

"What? Why not?"

"Because I..." and she fell silent for a few moments, "Because someday, I would like to settle down and have a family...you can't really do that when you're putting your life at risk fighting wars."

Rudolph frowned.

"Besides...what if Santa needs you again?"

"He can always call me, and I'll come back to help..." and Rudolph turned to face Alex, who nodded in confirmation, "See?"

She sighed, shaking her head, "Do whatever you want...but I'm not coming with you...I'm staying here," and she rotated on her hooves and left. Soon after, they could hear the front door slam shut, and Rudolph turned to face the High Command once again.

"Charming girl..." Cheet remarked.

Rudolph shrugged, "I can understand where she's coming from...but ever since I heard of you guys, I've wanted to join you."

"Well," and Alex stretched, "Show us the base, help us destroy it, and I can safely say, 'welcome to the team, brother'."

Rudolph nodded, "Will do," and he faced the window, "Looks like the storm is calming down..." turning to face them again, he asked, "When do you want to go?"

"Let's go right now," Alex replied.

Rudolph nodded, "Okay, then...let's go."

Almost an hour later, they reached the wreckage of their plane, "It's around here," Rudolph replied, "You guys were close," and after several more minutes, they reached the outskirts of the compound. In a clearing, they saw three stone buildings, almost resembling pillboxes, surrounded in a tall, electrified chain link fence. There was only one way in and out of the base, through a compound marked by HMG nests, two guard towers, and several, patrolmen. The compound itself was dotted with guard towers, spotlights panned back and forth across the grounds, and guards patrolled the snowy land.

"So..." the reindeer began, "You have an idea on what we're going to do?"

Silence from Alex's end, "I'm looking, hold on."

"I wasn't expecting something this big..." Cheet said, sounding unsure.

"To be honest...neither was I..."

"Something wrong?" Rudolph asked.

"Yeah..." and Alex turned to face him, "We're gonna need more manpower."

"Also gonna need more firepower," Cheet replied, "These buildings look like they can take one hell of a lot of shelling and still make it out to see another day."

Alex removed his binoculars from his satchel, scanning the compound for any sign as to what to do. The main building looked to be holding the guns that had shot them down on its rooftop, he took note of this and continued, when his eyes fell upon the garages. A truck was parked against the side of the building, loaded with fuel tanks. "Have an idea..." Alex began, replacing his binoculars, "It won't take down the base, but it can at least shake them up a bit and let us get in," and he quickly set up his sniper rifle.

"What's the plan?" Cheet asked.

"What are you doing?" Rudolph asked him.

"Just watch..." Alex replied, adjusting his scope as he went prone, focusing on the truck, "Watch and learn."

Once he was sure he had his target in his sights, and he was positive that the shot would connect, he finally depressed the trigger, hoping that his unassisted estimates would prove to be accurate. He had literally one shot at this, if it failed, the entire base was on high alert and they would have to pull back and wait, either for the base to settle down, or for backup, both of which would take far too long, and with another winter storm on the horizon, and the temperature reaching dangerous lows, they would freeze to death before they could begin another attack. With a quick, silent prayer, he pulled the trigger. A loud crack rang throughout the air, and he swore as he realized he had forgot his silencer. Instantly, the guards were on alert, but before they had a chance to react, the fuel truck erupted into a ball of flame, igniting the entire area in flame. The guards immediately ran towards the scene to investigate, and Alex, quickly disassembling and putting away his rifle, nodded towards the base, "Right, let's go."

As they ran down the hill, heading towards the compound, Cheet asked, "How the hell do you expect us to do this? You're gonna need a lot more than a couple of conveniently placed fuel tanks..."..

"Look on the roof of the biggest building..." he replied, swiftly shooting down the guards at the checkpoint, taking out the distracted HMG crews, focused on the explosion, before they could react.

"Those our guns?" the cheetah asked.

"Affirmative...now tell me, what's _usually _found near the guns?"

Silence for a few moments before Cheet's eyes widened with understanding, "The magazine..."

"Roger."

"What are you guys talking about?" Rudolph asked.

"You'll see," the Commander responded, then, "Best to stay back, Rudy, you ain't mutated yet, so one shot and you're dead."

Once they reached the locked steel door to the main facility, the Commander quickly picked the lock, kicking the door open and shooting down the LKA in the small room. Closing and bolting the door behind them, Alex led them deeper into the facility, moving from room to room, clearing out any LKA in their path as they searched for an access to the anti-aircraft guns on the roof. "Look for a ladder or something to take us upstairs to the roof..." Alex replied as he raced up a stairwell. Thankfully, at this hour, most of the staff were asleep, and the quarters seemed to be either off site or in another building...of course, if the explosion didn't rouse them, probably nothing would.

"Hold on, hold on, hold on!" Rudolph exclaimed, out of breath, "What are you planning?"

"Keep moving, Rudy! You stop and you're as good as dead, we only have a limited time before they figure out something's up and they come to investigate...and if they find us, I doubt we'll be breathing for very long, _especially _you, since in their eyes, you're just a random, or a newbie...Cheet and I would probably be taken captive because we're the commanding body of the whole damn militia."

"Maybe we should have left him back home..." Cheet remarked.

"And what would that help?"

"Well, he wouldn't be slowing us down, for one!"

"Might as well hit the ground running."

"Over here!" Rudolph exclaimed, running into a side room.

"Wait!" Alex exclaimed, stopping in mid run and rotating on his heels, "Rudy! What the hell man! Don't do that!"

Charging into the room that the reindeer had disappeared into, Alex found him standing next to a ladder leading up to the roof. "Well...I'll be damned," Alex began, "Nice..." and he climbed up the ladder, emerging on the roof and taking down the small crew operating the entire battery. The magazine was haphazardly scattered across the rooftop, with no apparent order, and Alex wondered how they managed to get by with Command. He was notoriously lenient on the rules, perhaps _too _lenient by some standards, and yet even _he _had a problem with a lack of organization...then again, considering that the LKA at this point was effectively a 'headless chicken', operating without a leader and unable to find or keep one, perhaps that was why the various isolated clusters could care less. Either way, a few well-placed grenades could take care of the battery, and even though he and his team did not possess enough firepower to lay waste to the base...the ammunition would continuously for quite some time, easily marking the site for a bombing run from Elliot. He stayed near the ladder heading down as he tossed grenades across the roof, and once the last one was thrown, he slid down the ladder onto the second floor, rejoining his squad. Behind him, the gun batteries erupted in smoke and fire, and Alex began, "Probably would be a good idea to get out of here before they investigate..."

"Hell's _that _gonna do!" Cheet replied, impatient, "That won't stop them!"

"No," Alex began, "But now this place is now visible for miles around, our bombers should have no problem finding it tomorrow morning."

Cheet paused for a moment, "Oh...neat."

"See? I know my shit."

"So..." Rudolph began once they raced down the stairs back onto ground level, "Any idea how we're gonna get out of this base, now that the entire place is coming to meet us?" and as soon as he said this, they heard the distant shouts of arriving soldiers.

"Working on it..." Alex replied impatiently, waving for them to take cover behind a stack of crates. They hid from sight as the soldiers raced past them, heading upstairs. Once the first group were out of hearing range, Alex motioned for them to continue on, and they made their way back towards the exit. Another wave of troops were arriving to meet them, but with several swift pounces from Cheet and accurate, silenced shots from the Commander's assault rifle, they went down soon after. Now back outside, Alex led them to the very edge of the base, hugging the fence behind the third, second largest building. The area was relatively light with security, since the majority of the LKA on site were split between investigating the fuel truck or the gun battery...though Alex expected the heat to increase if the LKA decided that, since this building had not been hit yet, it was the last on their unknown saboteurs' list. Soon, they reached a wide open space standing before them and the exit into the forest. Resistance was light, but trucks loaded with soldiers were now pouring through the gates from the forest into the compound, they would have to time a quick sprint towards the gates, and pray that no more reinforcements arrived, and no one turned to face them. "Okay guys, on my mark," the Commander began.

"What? We're just gonna run into it?"

"Like we have a choice?" Alex snapped.

"Actually," Rudolph began, "We do," and he motioned towards his back, "Both of you, hop on."

"What?"

"Just do it...and hurry."

Exchanging glances, both Alex and Cheet eventually shrugged and mounted the reindeer.

"Now," he began, "Hold on!" and he ran back to the end of the building, rotating on his hooves and sprinting forward, as if charging. About halfway down, he jumped into the air, and both Alex and Cheet were terrified, Alex nearly strangling Rudolph as he held on, with Cheet digging his claws painfully into the Commander's lap, drawing blood, as the reindeer flew into the skies, over the fence, and landing on the other side of the perimeter.

"How the hell..." Alex began, dismounting, sparks dancing around his bloody thighs as the wounds inflicted upon him by Cheet healed. The cheetah himself was standing in place, back arched, trembling in terror.

Rudolph winked, "Hey, I'm one of Santa's reindeer after all."

Alex shrugged, "Valid point...so what next? Once we get as far away from here as possible, I mean..."

As dawn broke in the skies above, they exited the forest into a clearing, and Alex shook his head as he saw a very Christmas-y village before him. "I don't fucking believe it..."

"Believe it..." Cheet responded, "God knows we've seen everything else...did you _really _expect Santa's workshop not to exist, when we've seen Rudolph the red-nosed friggin' reindeer?"

"So..." Alex began, "You guys wouldn't happen to have a radio...would you?"

"Follow me," the reindeer began, leading them towards the main building. Upon reaching it, the reindeer opened the door, entering the warmth, bright hall beyond. Thankfully, it was empty, the last thing Alex wanted to do was explain his and his cheetah friend's presence to a bunch of elves. Rudolph led him to the atrium, with an enormous Christmas tree as a focal point, "There's a radio in here," and he led the Commander to the phone.

"That's a phone...but close enough," Alex replied with a sigh.

"I have to talk to a couple of people...I'll be right back."

"Kayden..." and as Rudolph left down a hall into the east wing of the building, Alex picked up the phone, dialing Elliot's home, since, with the time difference, the night was most likely just beginning back in the States. He reached into his pocket, pulling out his own phone, cracked and shot from the crash, and he swore as he tossed it aside.

When Rudolph returned a few minutes later, Alex had just ended the call with Elliot, informing the general that, although the base was still standing, it _did_, in fact, exist, and that it was nice and marked for the bombers to finish up. The reindeer didn't return alone...Clarice was on one side, and the jolly Saint Nicholas was on the other. Cheet could barely contain himself, and Alex only closed his eyes and lowered his head with a sigh, he had to be dreaming.

"Hello there, Mister Vaughn."

"Oh, you know my name," and Alex looked up, "Must ask, am I on the naughty or the nice list?"

"Seems that old Rudolph here would like to join you."

"Seems that way...he's pretty good, will make a fine soldier, indeed."

"Well, let's make a little deal here then, shall we?"

"Here we go..." Cheet remarked, rolling his eyes and laying down.

"He can come with you, but under one condition...every Christmas, I want him back here for our run. He will then be able to return to you first thing Christmas Day, how does that sound?"

Alex shrugged, "Fair enough."

The fat man nodded, "Good, good...glad we could come to a deal."

"So I can really go?" Rudolph asked, eyes alight.

The toymaker nodded, and Alex couldn't help to smile that the reindeer could barely contain his excitement, "Thank you, sir!"

Santa Claus turned to face Alex, "As for you, I will see you Christmas Eve," and he left with one of his signature 'ho, ho, ho's'. Silenced and at a loss for words, even after the jolly man had left. Alex turned to face Cheet, who finally lost it to wild laughter.

"He's even funnier than the stories say! Oh my God! This is priceless! I can't wait to tell the others about this little chance encounter!"

Alex sighed.

"Before we go," Rudolph began, "I need to say a few things to Clarice...is that okay?"

"Be my guest," Alex responded, "But...eh...Cheet and I are gonna wait outside."

The reindeer nodded, "Okay, I promise, I won't be long."

"Please don't," and the Commander watched him race off before he turned to face the cheetah again, now under control, "S'go, Cheet."

"Right behind you, Alex."


	15. Chapter XV: Immunity

_**Chapter XV**_**:**

**-''Immunity''-**

**-Vermilion, Illinois-**

**-**_**06 June 2006**_**-**

**-**_**1255 Hours**_**-**

Alex stepped outside of his parents home in Vermilion, it had been almost a year since his family had moved up north from Connorsville, given to the town collapsing into a state of disrepair and overridden by gangs and crime. Vermilion was a quaint little rural town, with a relatively small population of mostly elderly folk, a very family-oriented community with little crime outside of methamphetamine labs and disorderly conduct, sitting on the the historical road connecting Chicago to the lower reaches of Illinois. Because it was such a small community, there was little to do, and, at first anyway, the lack of anything to pass the time nearly drove the Commander insane, with the LKA seemingly permanently gone, and no other threat having risen to challenge the growing Terminator Militia. Over time, he had begun to settle into some of the smaller community things that would occasionally crop up, between village celebrations or a historical railroad museum near their home, where he would waste his summer weekends with the rest of Alpha Company.

Here, he met a friend of his, a boy named Mark, someone he had met in school and grown to befriend, someone who had taken the Commander under his wing to help him and the rest of Alpha Company adjust to the small town, rural lifestyle. There were other people he had met in Junior High that he had come to befriend, but he found that friends were hard to come by. The student body was arrogant, narcissistic, and usually comprised of the spoiled children of wealthy farmers around the area. Although physical bullying had eased up with them having left Connorsville, and Thomas Jefferson, far behind, they had entered the next era in their schooling, and found that the hell continued relentlessly. Alex was seen as a creep, insulted and mocked behind his back, still unable to do anything to help himself. Although it was somewhat easier than what he had to deal with in elementary, it was still a living hell, and the psychological bullying did not help the mental stability of a kid who had seen far too much for his age and been dealt irreparable psychological trauma from his combat experience and checkered history.

The fact he was surrounded by a bunch of cutesie, little, furry critters did not make matters any easier on him, even if said critters were rather well-experienced soldiers. Ironically enough, most of the ridicule for Alpha Company was geared towards Simba, Nala, Kiara, Kovu, and Cheet, ferocious carnivores whose respective species had a history of bloodlust and terrorizing settlements, that were not quite cubs, but also not quite adults either, Prancy was also not very well-received, and upon Rudolph's arrival, any legitimacy or influence Alpha Company had over their peers was shattered. Shockingly enough, Sonic and his team, Piermont, and Cherub were the best received among their peers, with most indifferent to Crash, although he had a healthy portion of the student body who deemed him as unworthy of respect.

Not that it mattered much anymore.

They were out of school for the summer, and Alex fully intended to enjoy the break as much as he could, even if he disliked the lack of missions. The Commander soon arrived at the old railroad depot, finding it already open and running for the day. Although he could count the number of visitors the place received on average every year on one hand, it was still _something_, and if worse came to worse, there always seemed to be an endless supply of conversations and subjects to bullshit about with Mark and the rest of the museum's staff, who were amused by Alpha Company's existence, but not outright insulting.

Currently, the Commander was discussing the rumored updated mutation serum that Elliot had hinted was in production. It promised to eliminate, or at least vastly reduce, the threat that silver posed to mutants, meaning that it could potentially prevent a fate like what the Commander, Cheet, and Rapid had been forced to undergo during 'No-Tongue''s reign of terror when he was still commanding the LKA. Well...at least _most _of Alpha Company was discussing the serum. Piermont and Cherub were by themselves, discussing names for children, as Cherub seemed to be pregnant. Alex was glad for them, but at the same time, he was envious that, even now, he had yet to find someone to love or who loved him, as he and Sabrina had long-since had a falling out. As he had finally gathered the courage to admit his deeply held feelings for, she had kindly denied the offer, and they had not talked since. He found that his mind kept turning over to the dolphin, whose name he could not remember, that had allowed him to pleasure her the previous year, and the fact that he had, apparently, multiple sexual partners, although he could not remember exactly how many or their names. As a young, mostly healthy teenage boy in the height of puberty and sexual development, he desperately wanted one of his destined partners to enter the picture, and soon, but as of the moment, anyway, he seemed to be out of luck, and he found himself impatient for their arrival, wondering when they were going to appear in his life.

Due to his bond with Piermont, the male forest dragon could sense his sexual distress, but had decided to make a light joke out of it, consistently reminding him that he was going to have "more pussy than everyone else combined" at his disposal, soon enough. The Commander had only told him off, irritated and impatient nevertheless. His private sessions with the dragon still continued, albeit rarely, now that Piermont and Cherub had become fully enthralled in one another, and on occasion, Cherub had offered to let him pleasure her if it would relieve his struggle, _because _it was affecting Piermont, putting him in an almost constantly aroused state, enough to irritate the female dragon. He had accepted, had done it a few times, but when all it seemed to do was make his lust harder for him to deal with, she had, instead, offered to let him mate her fully. He, out of reluctance and fear of the act, coupled with the taboo nature of said act, had chosen to decline the offer, and she had, since then, made no other offer to him, even for so much as to have him rub her off again. Regretting his decision, but embarrassed at such an intimate request, he had purposely avoided to bring up the subject with her directly, occasionally sending her subtle hints which she either did not register or otherwise chose to ignore; he did not press the issue.

Thankfully, the subject and excitement of the new version of the mutation serum had served as a temporary respite from his more secular thoughts, and when Elliot's old Cadillac pulled up into the round, gravel driveway of the museum, there was little any of Alpha Company could do to restrain their giddy excitement at what news the general would bring, especially if it was important enough to warrant a personal visit, over a simple phone call and summons back to the Quads. The short, stocky general himself waddled into the building, wearing a five o'clock shadow, frazzled straw hat, sunglasses, a bright, cyan blue Hawaiian shirt, khaki shorts, and sandals.

"Any news?" Cheet asked excitedly.

"Got something you boys might like," he began, "A little present from Fox." and he placed a battered suitcase he had brought with him down onto a nearby workbench. Alpha Company was around him, as excited as children on Christmas Day as he flipped the clasps and threw the case open, revealing a needle gun and two dozen vials of a dark red fluid...the mutation serum.

"It's here?" Piermont began, "Fuckin' A!"

Elliot nodded, "Yup, she's here...R&D's been workin' overtime on this for you boys and girls, ya better enjoy it. Who's first up to bat?"

"I'll be," the human-form forest dragon responded, propping one foot up on the chair and rolling up his sleeves to expose his left forearm to the general, "Shoot me up, Bob."

One by one, the others of Alpha Company received the new serum with Rudolph being the last in line. Once everyone had been mutated, Alex exchanged his supply of version one with a new, small case of version two, to be kept on hand in case anyone was in need of a quick dose in the heat of battle, or another member came along and had to be dosed up immediately, such as during a battle. Finally, as Elliot packed up the leftovers in the trunk of his car, Alex approached him, asking, "So, anything on this elusive LKA base, yet?"

"Still nothing," the general replied with a sigh, walking around the museum, checking it out, "We're working around the clock to find 'em, but as of right now, no luck."

"If she's got any size to it, I'm surprised the LKA haven't attacked us again," Piermont scoffed.

"Heh...probably too scared to do anything, we wiped out their capital and one of their biggest outposts, ain't surprised they're staying low, and they damn well should! Don't worry though, we'll find 'em, and when we do, we'll hopefully drive the rest of them to disband."

"So the LKA are still together then?"

"Yeah, unfortunately. We got some mild pockets of trouble here and there, but most of it's just some crazy gangbanger that decided it was a good idea to shoot somethin' up in the name of the LKA...buncha punk-ass niggers is all they really are," and Elliot struck one of his cigars, taking a deep breath, "We'll stop 'em. Now, who wants to test out whether or not this shit works?" and he withdrew a knife of pure silver from its sheathe at his waist.

Standing around in the parking lot, Elliot passed the knife around to each member of Alpha Company, who proceeded to cut themselves, observing to see whether or not the blood seeping from the wound bubbled, and how fast the wound itself healed. There seemed to be a delayed reaction to healing the wound, but there _also _didn't seem to be any adverse effects of the silver in their bloodstream, meaning that, for all intents and purposes, they were fully and finally immune to their singular damning weakness.

"Now," Elliot began, wiping off his blade and replacing it, "Y'all may be immune to silver, but that don't mean that you can't die. The serum ain't gonna and never will protect your sorry asses if you get your heads severed or start to bleed out from a serious wound, so you still gotta watch yourselves, you ain't invincible, you're just that much harder to kill."

"Thanks Elliot," Alex began.

"Shit, don't thank me, thank Fox an' the rest of R&D, _they're _the ones that have spent the last four goddamn years working to overcome your aversion to good ol' '_Ag_'. Took long enough, but we finally got that straightened out, now I don't wanna hear the news that another one of you sons of bitches fell in battle, you hear?"

They all nodded in confirmation, as he headed back to his car, "Good...good...", and he paused in front of the driver's side door, turning to face them, tapping his ear, "I'll keep you girls informed if somethin' pops up, so be ready for anything," he climbed into his car, starting it up, smoke poured from the exhaust, and he revved it up to get the old engine running, "We may not have found the LKA's last stronghold yet, but we will soon, I can smell it," and with this, he drove off, racing down the street, heading back to the airport at Connorsville.

"So..." Piermont began, slapping the Commander on the back, "We finally overcame our weakness to silver, huh?"

Alex nodded, "Yup, seems about right."

"Nice...was getting' worried about that..."

"Yep..."

"Indeed..." then, "And now, you can go back to worrying about getting some tail," and he chuckled, heading back up towards the museum, "Who knows? Maybe you can finally shake your virginity free real soon, eh?"

Alex sighed, and Rudolph approached him, "You're a virgin?"

He nodded, "Yeah..."

"Huh...I figured someone as popular as you would have gotten a girlfriend a _long _time ago..."

"Yeah, well in case you didn't notice from school, we don't get along real well with the general populace...that includes girls, as well."

"If you're really that desperate to get a girlfriend...you should try, one isn't just going to fall into your hands."

"I _have _tried."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Didn't notice..."

"Well, I'm not that good at flirting, so that probably doesn't help matters."

"You need some help?"

"No thanks, I'm good...last thing I want is to show girls that the _big bad Commander Alex Vaughn_ needs his furry friends you talk to girls for him."

"Hey...I was just offering to help."

"I know, I know...thanks, but no thanks. If I get a girl, I want it to be of my own doing, not someone else's."

"Well...just as a piece of advice, you might actually want to _try _flirting with someone you are interested in. Talking about the weather isn't really flirting."

"Hey...that's not all I talk about!"

"Really."

"Really! I talk about the lunch menu, about the fun of school...stuff like that."

Rudolph only chuckled, "Okay...so maybe small talk is a gateway into something more intimate, but you gotta move beyond the small talk once you establish a pretty good working relationship with someone."

"That's my problem...don't know _when _the best time to move on is..."

"Well...the only way you can figure it out is through practice...we all have our share of rejections before we find someone we connect with."

"Like you and Clarice?"

Silence from the reindeer.

"C'mon, man, I know you two gotta thing for each other."

"Not sure if she has a thing for me...but I do...kinda, sorta like her..."

"Go for it...she likes you."

"How can _you _tell! You can't even tell when a girl is interested in you!"

"Yeah...that's the thing, I can tell when others are interested in one another, but when it comes to myself...well...I'm S.O.L."

"S.O.L?"

"Shit outta luck."

"Ah."

"Yep," and they reentered the museum together.


End file.
